Love at Last
by PoisinAngel
Summary: The Gundam pilots are fighting OZ and run across some new friends. Heero, Duo, and Quatra might fall in love? WHAT? My summary sucks, but please read!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Accusations

"Meika! Meeeeiiikkkkaaa!" A tall blonde haired girl of nineteen turned at the sound of her name, putting down the part she was fixing. An officer at the pilot academy she was attending ran up to her. The two were good friends even though the other girl was Meika's superior.

"What is it Ummi?" Meika questioned the brunette twenty year old. Ummi stopped by Meika and had to catch her breath from the long run from the office of General Azra. Meika waited patiently for her friend to stop panting.

"The general wants to see you. He said it was urgent." Meika's smirk faded and was replaced by a look of dread.

"Any idea why he wants to see me?" She asked, cleaning up the small mess she had made.

"No, but… Blake was in the office as well. It can't be good news whenever he is concerned with you."

As soon as Ummi finished her sentence Meika was off to the Main Building. She left the paved sidewalk in favor of a quicker way across the lawn. She was quite curious about what she was needed for, and Ummi was right. Blake being there was not a good sign.

Ever since Meika entered the academy the two had been rivals. Their relationship didn't improve when Meika scored the highest in their class on the simulation devices.

"Girls can't be pilots." Blake had said. Him being present at the same time she was called could only mean one of them was in trouble, and Meika had a sinking feeling as she stepped into the air-conditioned office that she was the culprit.

It didn't take her long to walk the blue carpeted hall to General Azra's office. Opening the chestnut door, she was greeted by general Azra's stern face and Blake's smug expression. Her heart leapt into her throat. Whatever it was she was in for it.

Blake brush aside his long, thick black hair and shot Meika a gloating expression. General Azra's face was severe as he fixed his honey colored eyes on the young woman.

"You called for me Sir?" Meika asked, saluting. General Azra didn't return her salute, this alarmed Meika. Meika's heart stopped as the General stood.

"Trainee Meika Hou, you are aware of the murder of Captain Bering, correct?" Meika nodded and the General turned to Blake. "Present your evidence, trainee Blake." Meika held her breath, what evidence was the general talking about?

Blake pulled out a necklace and Meika grew angry. Where had he gotten her charm necklace? It was gold with a little airplane and shuttle charm. Meika had gotten it as a gift from Ummi on the 9th day of the flight academy. That necklace was always either around Meika's neck or in the drawer beside her bed.

"This is yours, correct?" The general questioned Meika. Meika nodded her head slightly. Blake pulled out a hair band that Meika sometimes wore. "This is also yours, correct?" The general stated, already knowing the answer. Again Meika nodded. She didn't like where this was leading. General Azra sighed.

"Trainee Meika Hou, you have been convicted of first degree murder in the death of Captain Bering." Meika couldn't move, or speak. This was impossible! She did _not_ kill anyone! Yet here Blake was presenting her belongings, claiming them to be near the Captains body when he was shot. She then realized that Blake had famed her. Blake was a bully, but she never thought he would stoop this low. Unfortunately, she had no way of proving her innocence.

Meika had been missing the night of the murder, even though she had only gone to get something she had left behind. She had seen the murder happen, but the killer had been wearing camolfladuge and a cloak, and she haden't been able to get a good look at the suspect. Since she had no clues as to who it could be, she kept her mouth shut.

"Meika, you are hereby sentenced to death by lethal injection." The General stated. Meika gulped.

"You're kidding right?" She questioned. The General shook his head.

"I never joke."He replied. Meika shivered as she backed up feeling the chestnut door behind her.

"Not even a trial, are you positive I killed the Captain?" Even as General Azra nodded Meika was feeling for the door handle. When she found it, she twisted it and bolted from the room.

"After her!" She heard General Azra command. It wasn't hard to detect Blake's thundering footsteps as he gave pursuit. Meika saw the automatic doors being shut. She would never make it on time. Instead she turned on a dime and fled down a hallway, Blake on her heels.

"Uh-oh." Meika had bolted up a flight of steps only to realize that she had no way of getting down safely. Still, she ran.

She stopped in a side room and hid herself in a closet. Her heart was pounding wildly as she felt the blood rushing though her ears. After a few moments, she stepped softly from the closet. At that exact moment, Blake burst through the door, trapping her in the room.

"Come on girlie. You have an appointment with a needle." He drew his gun. Meika pressed herself against the window. Blake leveled his weapon at her. Then General Azra joined, pulling his own gun and pointing it at the desperate girl.

"Nice and slow Meika, come on now." Azra said. Meika responded by flattening herself against the window. Then, she got an idea. Bringing her arm forth, she smashed it backwards, shattering the glass and hurling herself through the broken window. Gunshots rang out over her head.

The escape from the room had taken but a moment, but the five story fall seemed to take forever. To her relief, she had launched herself out far enough to hit the lake below.

With a splash Meika hit the water. It was cool and refreshing, had she not been running for her life, she would have stopped to enjoy it. Meika swam rapidly though the deep water to the opposite shore. She pulled herself out and ran though the lawn not heeding the people in her way.

She managed to make it to the garage. Ummi was still there, and upon seeing Meika soaking wet, she guessed what happened. Meika looked frantically in the garage for a place to hide. She found a shimmering black motorcycle, and crouched behind it. Ummi told then General when he had arrived and questioned her that Meika had run out the back door. Meika felt a wave of gratitude towards the officer.

When Blake and the general had left, Meika stood up. Ummi looked at her sympathetically.

"I need to get out of here Ummi, they think I murdered the captain." Meika said in short breaths. Ummi nodded.

"Come by our bunk tonight. I'll let you in so you can get your stuff and leave. Blake did a real good job manipulating the general, didn't he?" Ummi said. Meika nodded miserably.

"He had my necklace, the one you gave me, and my hair band. Now I know why they were missing."

"What are you going to do when you escape."

"Go to a space colony, if I can fake an ID and get on a passenger shuttle." Ummi walked over and hugged her friend.


	2. Chapter 2

I dont own Gundam Wing

Chapter 2: Escape and a New Friend

When night finally came Meika crept silently to her cabin. Everyone should be asleep by now. She knocked quietly on the door. Ummi opened it and let her in. The younger girl needed no lights to find her belongings and pack them in a black duffle bag.

"You might want to change into something darker in case they go looking for you. You don't want to be seen until you are safe."Ummi suggested. Meika finished packing and nodded, grabbing a black tank top, and black skirt, and black knee high boots. She changed and grabbed her bag, and tied her long blonde hair into a loose braid. Ummi handed her a smaller bag.

"What is it?" Meika questioned.

"Money. You will need it if you're going to eat and afford a shuttle ticket." Meika hugged Ummi. "Thank you! I'll always be in your debt."

"I'm sure you will be." Meika froze and turned. Blake and the General were standing in the door way.

"Both of you are under arrest." The general said.

Ummi drew her gun and prepared to shoot the general but Blake was faster. Ummi went down in a burst of gun powder and a bloody hole in her chest. Angry, Meika grabbed Ummi's gun and shot Blake and then General. When she turned back, Ummi was already dead, eyes glazed over. Meika filled the gun with charges, grabbed plenty of spares, and tucked a knife into one of her boots. She then grabbed her bag and ran from the cabin, having no time to mourn the loss of her friend.

Running to the garage she took the first vehicle she found. The black motorcycle she hid behind earlier. Gunning the engine, she tore from the garage, before the awakened trainees got more than a yard from their cabins. Meika kept her speed at max as she drove across the black fields.

It was daybreak when Meika stopped. She figured she was about two hundred miles from the academy at this point. Meika pulled into a gas station to refill the nearly empty tank and to ask where the nearest shuttle port was.

"About forty miles from here, due east. Why? Heading to visit relativities?" Not wanting to revel her true predicament Meika nodded. "Something like that. Thanks!"

Meika drove the forty miles on back roads hoping to avoid any police.

It was around nine am when Meika reached the shuttle port. It was teeming with people, like she had expected. Getting in line to buy her ticket she gazed around the place. It wasn't anything fancy, mostly concrete and metal. All sorts of people were coming and going.

Her blood ran cold as she spotted an officer from the academy looking right at her. He shouted for her to stop as she ran from the line back to her motorcycle. She reached it and zoomed off.

Taking the back roads again she found her way into the mountains. It was cold and windy up here. A huge difference from the heat given off by the departing shuttles at the port. Meika's thoughts turned back to Ummi. It made her furious, thinking of what Blake had done to her friend.

Meika halted abruptly, looking at the young man that stood before her in the road. "Whoa! Watch out you crazy driver!" A male voice shouted.

"Hi!" She said cheerfully. She wasn't about to let her dark mood influence her impressions on other people. He stared at her.

"Un." He grunted and nodded his head at her. The man was taller than her with dark chocolate eyes and short brown hair. He looked to be in his 20's.

"Watch where you're going! You nearly ran me over!" He yelled with a scowl plastered on his face.

"Well you shouldn't have been crossing the road without looking! I'm sure you heard me coming!" Meika retorted. "Who are you anyhow?"

"That's not your concern." The young man proceeded to cross the road . Suddenly, he shouted in surprise and disappeared from sight. Meika raised her eyebrow. She walked her motorcycle to the side of the road and looked down. The man was lying at the bottom of a steep hill. Apparently he'd not realized that the hill was so steep. It was covered in snow, so maybe it had blended into the landscape beyond.

"Hey! Are you okay?" Meika yelled down. When she didn't get an answer she yelled again. He remained silent. Meika figured she'd drive down to check on him. She proceeded down a road that got her down the hill then she u-turned, driving slowly to where the stranger was. He hadn't moved. Meika parked the 'cycle and knelt beside him, the snow freezing her uncovered legs.

"Hey, are you hurt?" she asked. When he saw her, he stirred, and sat up quickly.

"I'm fine just leave me be."However, she noticed he was cradling his left arm.

"Yeah right." Meika noticed the tempture had dropped and she shivered noticeably. Night would soon fall and she could feel a storm coming. Standing up, Meika offered to help him, but he refused her hand standing on his own.

"Are you close to where you're going? Its gonna get cold." The man shook his head no. "Then hop on my motorcycle and I'll take you to your destination." Again he refused.

"You're awfully stubborn." She joked. The man stared at her expressionless. Meika sighed.

"You can't stay the night out here. You'll freeze to death!" She pointed out. He said nothing. "Oh boy." She said to herself exasperated. She heard a small laugh, sounding if there had been an attempt to hold it back. She turned but the man's mouth didn't hold a hint of the sound she heard, but his eyes were laughing. Meika scowled half-heartedly, then smiled.

"Where are you headed?" He asked her. She shrugged.

"Anywhere except Haru Pilot Academy." The man decided not to ask why she was avoiding that place. Meika looked to the sky, it was darkening fast and the tempture was plummeting. Shivering she glanced at the man.

"Are you sure you don't want a ride? It's freezing and it hasn't even hit rock bottom yet." He studied her for a moment, noticing a small blush appear on her cheeks as he studied her. Finally he nodded, agreeing to go with her.

"Good." Meika turned to her bike when a strong gust of wind whistled around them. It left a fog so thick that Meika couldn't see the man.

"Where are you?" She called. The stranger answered by placing his hand softly on her shoulder. She grabbed his hand and proceeded to lead him to where she thought the motorcycle was. She found it by banging her shin hard against the back tire. She climbed on and helped the other onto the bike, being careful not to injure his arm more. She then revved up the engine and pulled up the kickstand.

"You can drive in this?" He asked. Meika turned and grinned at him.

"Not really, but at least we'll be moving. Where are you headed?" she asked.

"To a hanger 180 miles south of the boarding school." Meika blinked at him.

"Why didn't you get a bus, or a cab, to take you there?"She wondered.

"Didn't want the public knowing where it was." Meika shrugged and moved the bike a few feet up the hill to the road.

"And you trust me?"

"Do I have a choice?" The stranger answered. Meika grinned to herself.

"No. Not really, unless you want to die out here." She got the bike moving down the road and sped up.

Around two hours later, the bike hit a rut in the road, sending Meika scrambling to get it under control. The motorcycle was fishtailing and swerving on the icy gravel. The man wrapped his good arm around Meika for the first time since they started their journey as Meika desperately tried to keep them from falling. It was no use, the bike hit another rut and the cycle with its passengers was sent cart wheeling over the rail guard and down the hill. Meika was glad when the bike hit the bottom and stopped flipping. Meika had landed a few feet from the bike but her passenger's legs were trapped underneath it, and it was slowly sliding closer to his head as he was attempting to escape from beneath it. Meika grabbed him and pulled him out from under the bike before it fell any farther. She helped him to his feet and sighed.

"Geez, were in a pinch now. I can't turn that thing over and you can't help me with your arm like that. Speaking of which, let me take a look at it." He cautiously held out his injured arm to her and Meika inspected it. It wasn't broken, but it was swelling around his elbow. He had sprained it at the least. Meika frowned thoughtfully. He put his arm back down to his side as Meika pulled her duffel bag from under the motorcycle.

She sat down on the snow and looked though her bag. Finding the first aid kit she pulled the gauze out and rummaged around the snow for two sticks. When she found them she motioned for the stranger to sit down across from her, which he did. She piled some snow and ice into a plastic bag and put it on his elbow to keep the swelling down. Then she gently extended his arm and used the two sticks as a brace and wrapped the gauze around them to keep his arm from moving. He watched her quietly as she moved to the deep scratch on his shoulder. Her touch was gentle and he found that it calmed him.

"What your name?" he asked, almost startling Meika into dropping the disinfectant. She glanced at him briefly and smiled.

"Meika, Meika Hou. And you? Or are you still not telling me?" She giggled lightly causing a small smile to appear on his face.

"I can tell you, seeing as you were going to give me a ride to the hanger anyways. I'm Heero Yuy." He said, making Meika smile happily.

The tempture was incredibly cold as Meika cleaned up the supplies and put them away in the duffel bag. She pulled down an overhanging pine branch and tied it with rope to the tree trunk, fashioning a slight over hang. She did this several times until there was little chance of snow getting on their heads. She pulled others over to make 'walls'. It wasn't warm but if a storm hit they would mostly be safe.

"How do you know to do all this?" Heero asked her, as Meika was fighting with a flint and steel to make a small fire.

"Survival training at the academy." A shower of sparks started the fire and Meika swiftly fed it some small twigs to get it going. When the fire was large enough, she sat back against the tree trunk. The warmth from the flames melted away the chill of the snowy climate.

"We must be pretty high in the mountain for it to be this cold." Meika observed, warming her hands. Heero nodded. Meika shivered in her tank top and skirt. Though her boots kept her feet and lower legs warm, the rest of her was freezing. The fire was helping but it would be awhile before she warmed up enough to sleep. She was envious of Heero, he was wearing jeans, a tank top, and a jacket. She closed her eyes and sighed. After a few moments she felt something warm across her shoulders and looked up. She found Heero's jacket wrapped around her, but when she looked over at him, she couldn't even tell that he had moved, he was looking away from her, his features impassive. A slight blush crept over her cheeks as she pulled the jacket closer to her.

"Thank you." Meika said. The only response she got was a slight nod from the boy next to her. She smiled. It was going to be a long night.


	3. Chapter 3 and 4

Sorry for the delay everyone! But here it is now Chapter 3 and 4. Chapter 3 was a little short so i combined it with chapter 4.

Thank you so much to gh0s7y for the review!

Chapter 3 is a little slow but bear with me, it will get better soon I promise!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing... Don't Sue! I do however own the characters Meika and Katsumi!

Chapter 3: Katsumi

"Katsumi Otakawan, please report to the loading bay for instructions. And leave the cats in the shuttle please." There was smothered laughter as a twenty two year old girl stood from her table at the shuttle port café and walked towards the loading bay.

"You heard the co-official. Wait in the shuttle." Her midnight green eyes met the eyes of the two kittens at her side. They meowed unhappily. Yasu, the tortoise-shell female kitten put her front paws on the girl's leg in protest. Take, Yasu's calico brother, growled in displeasure. A hard glance from Katsumi gave them their answer and the kittens made their way reluctantly back to the shuttle.

Katsumi turned, her auburn hair fluttering in the breeze. Her hair normally fell down to her waist but she had cut it mid torso length. She walked into the loading bay quickly, not wanting to be late. She was the first one there.

"I'm sure you're all aware of the skirmish this morning." The co-official said once everyone had arrived.

"I want you all to be on look out for this girl that the Haru Pilot Academy is looking for. She is armed and dangerous. Her distinguishable features are ice blue eyes and long blonde hair. She is nineteen and was dressed completely in black on escape from the academy. She was driving a black motorcycle." Katsumi raised her hand and the co-official glanced at her.

"Yes Ms. Otakawan?"

"Why is the academy looking for this girl?" She questioned. Several people around groaned.

"She is responsible for the murders of Captain Bering, General Azra, and a fellow trainee named Blake." They were dismissed and Katsumi made her way back to the shuttle. She worked as a shuttle pilot for Trans-shuttle Company, and had worked there since the owner had seen her piloting a flier when she was seventeen. She liked to build things in her spare time. .

The screen suspended above the shuttle gate entrance said the shuttle would be launching in fifteen minutes. Katsumi sighed and whistled for her two cats. They came bounding from the cockpit's slightly open door. The kittens followed her back to the café where she took her place at a table and ordered a cup of coffee.

"Expecting another long one?" the waitress asked. People knew Katsumi and her kittens as well. Katsumi nodded slightly and sipped her coffee.

"You shouldn't drink so much coffee it's bad for your health." The waitress stated.

"People also say that I shouldn't stay up until 7 in the morning running a full time job as a shuttle pilot that makes m get up and three in the afternoon to call in for work or that I shouldn't bring my cats to work. Yet I do." The waitress shook her head amusingly. She had known Katsumi since she was a baby. Ever since an OZ raid had killed Katsumi's parents. The youngster didn't like people to think her inadequate for any line of work. She had ultimately sought a career in piloting so that she could maybe pilot something in an attack on OZ someday. Katsumi noticed the waitress staring at her, and laughed as the older woman hurried back to work.

"Will the pilots for shuttle gates 1 through fourteen please report to their shuttles for liftoff?" Katsumi paid the coffee and stood up. The kittens stuck firmly beside her and she passed though the late night crowed to gate six, where her shuttle waited.

People were finished loading, and the doors were being closed and sealed. If air escaped while they were in space, suffocation would be painful. Katsumi thought about this as she slid into the cockpit and fastened herself in. She closed and sealed the window followed by the door. She fastened her helmet under her chin and checked to make sure the speaker inside was working. When she was sure all was fine Katsumi applied for liftoff permission. It was granted and she started up the auxleriary engines. Maneuvering onto the runway she turned the main engines to half power. When the shuttle reached the main point she put the engines to third power. As the shuttle began to launch she gave the engine full power and switched on the propulsion engines. The shuttle cleared the run way and Katsumi angled it upwards. The cargo hold, cockpit, and passenger hold had their own gravity, so they never noticed the vertical angle. When they were in the atmosphere, Katsumi switched on the autopilot and leaned back.

"Another boring shuttle ferry." She said to her cats. They were batting at a feather on a string that hung from the ceiling. Katsumi ginned and seized Yasu, startling her. The female kitten purred once she realized what happened. Katsumi leaned back and closed her eyes. Strange that the coffee was having no effect…

The computers insistent notifications woke Katsumi and made her aware the shuttle was approaching the space colony. She took it off auto pilot and guided it to the docking bay, the hatch closed tightly behind the ship.

When she received clearance, Katsumi unsealed all the doors and opened her window to allow some fresher air in. She watched as the passengers unladed and retrieved their belongings. Katsumi figured since she had another hour before she had to pilot another bunch back to earth, she would stretch her legs and get something to drink.

"Come on guys." She said to her cats. The meowed and leaped after her as she walked from the cockpit door. Some people stared disdainfully at her as they realized their pilot had been such a young person, and that her cats followed her everywhere.

"What would you like miss?" The waiter asked and Katsumi looked up.

"A medium coffee please." The waiter nodded and returned moments later with her coffee. "Could I get some scraps for my kittens," She asked, "I'll pay extra if you want."

The waiter smiled and said that it wasn't a problem. He came back with the scraps and set the plate on the floor underneath the table. Yasu and Take began devouring their meal.

Katsumi sipped the hot coffee thoughtfully. Her waitress friend on earth was right. She did drink too much coffee, but she needed to stay awake on flights, or else they might crash if the computer failed to wake her in time. It was strange she had fallen asleep in the recent flight.

"I need a new job." She said to herself. Checking her wrist watch she noted that her break was over, she gave herself thirty minutes extra time just in case she might get lost on her way back to the port.

This time however, she knew exactly where her shuttle was and arrived before anyone else. She stretched and got into the cockpit, and laid her head on the controls closing her eyes.

Chapter 4: To the Hangar

A sudden yelling brought Katsumi back to her attention. People still hadn't arrived which was odd. Looking around she saw the probable reason. A blonde haired boy around her age was running from port security.

He saw Katsumi, the only present pilot, and ran towards her. He awkwardly pulled out a pistol when he reached her.

"I-I need your ship. Hand it over or I shoot." Katsumi looked behind him to the security officials. Then her eyes fell on their OZ enigmas. Her face hardened. She looked back to the boy. He was shaking and trembling. She smiled and grabbed the pistol in one swift motion. Katsumi stood up and moved further into the cockpit.

"Forget hijacking my ship. How about I save you from the OZ creeps and take you with me on a speedy exit?" The boy nodded and climbed into the cockpit. Take hissed at the boy as he shut the window and sealed the doors.

"Take shush. I suggest you find a secure place. I have some pretty good engines on this shuttle and they can deliver a hard kick." The latter was said to the boy. He nodded and sat directly behind her chair. As Katsumi fired up the engines and flashed the hangar controls the code to open the doors, she flipped the boy his pistol.

"Here, I don't need this. My attack cats and my 12-gauge here beside me will protect me way better than that little thing."He stared disbelievingly at the two little kittens who were curled up and watching the new comer with curious stares. Katsumi buckled herself in as she cleared the hanger into space.

She punched on the thrusters and the propulsion engines. The shuttle rocketed away from the space colony.

"Seeing as the space colony docking bay will have probably told the company I work for on earth what I've done, I might as well take 'er down in the wilderness. Why were you running from them anyways?" she asked the boy casually.

"They wanted to arrest me on criminal charges." Katsumi rolled her eyes.

"I kinda figured that. What kind of charges?" the boy was silent for a moment.

"Terrorist charges. I work with people who attack OZ." Katsumi whistled appreciatively.

"I think I like the way you people deal with OZ. What's your name?"

"Quatra Reberba Winner." Katsumi smiled in awe.

"I've heard about you. You pilot a Gundam named Sandrock. You're also on OZ's most wanted list."Quatra nodded. "There is also a hefty reward for your capture." Quatra tensed.

"Are you going to turn me in?" He asked. Katsumi laughed.

"Are you kidding me? Of course not! Like I said, I like the way you people handle OZ. I'm Katsumi Otakawan. These kittens and Yasu and Take." Quatra sighed in relief. Yasu, evidently deciding that Quatra was all right jumped onto his shoulder. He picked her up and petted her. She purred, eyes half shut.

Going at full speed they reached earth's atmosphere quickly. Katsumi slowed the ship as they entered making it seem little more than a meteorite on a sonar screen.

When the shuttle was below the sonar scanners, Katsumi pulled with ship up and flew it parallel to the ground a few meters above the tree tops.

"Any place in particular you want me to set it down?"She asked. Quatra considered.

"Yeah, set it down one hundred and ninety miles southeast of the boarding school nearby." Katsumi frowned.

"Where exactly are we headed?"

"To my base of operations. Sort of."

"Ah, then wouldn't we want to set it down about fifty miles from it to make sure no one follows us?" Quatra agreed sheepishly. When Quatra indicated Katsumi landed the shuttle.

"All rightly then." Katsumi unsealed and kicked open the cockpit door.

"What are we going to do about the shuttle?" Quatra asked. Katsumi shrugged.

"Empty it out and discard whatever we don't need. Then leave it here I guess." She opened the cargo door and climbed through the opening. She found her own meager belongings and pulled them from the cargo hold. Quatra was surprised all she carried was bedroll , a small tool box, a picture of a group of people, and a half-full duffle bag. She packed everything into the duffle bag and hung it over her shoulder. Since there was nothing else in there, they left behind the ship as it was and walked in the direction Quatra indicated.

By morning, the kittens were worn out and had fell asleep, one on the duffle bag and the other on Katsumi's head. Quatra and Katsumi were also tired from walking in the brisk cool weather all night but Quatra said they were close, so they pushed on.

They crested a hill and saw the base/hangar. Several people were standing outside.

"Trowa! Wufei!" Quatra called, waving. The two young men, around Quatra's age waved back as Quatra and Katsumi approached.

"Hello Quatra, good to see you. Who's this.?" Trowa, a tall brown haired man asked. Quatra grinned at his more serious comrades.

"This is Katsumi Otakawan. She's a shuttle pilot that helped me escape from the OZ guys at the space colony. Her kittens are Take and Yasu." Wufei and Trowa nodded to Katsumi in greeting.

"Where are Heero and Duo." Quatra asked when they were inside.

"Duo went to pick up the new engineer from the airport, and Heero hasn't checked in yet." Quatra frowned.

"That's odd wasn't Heero due back last night?"He was met with quiet nods. Quatra turned to Katsumi.

"I guess you can stay in the empty quarters near the repair bay." Katsumi agreed with a small yawn.

Quatra lets Katsumi to where she'd be sleeping. She thanked him and collapsed on the bed. Quatra closed the door quietly and walked back to where the other two waited.

Katsumi and the kittens were asleep moments after the door was shut


	4. Chapter 5

Hello everyone! This chapter is a little short, but since I posted a much longer chapter earlier tonight I thought it wouldn't hurt! I really hope everyone enjoys this chapter! I haven't had my beta reader go though this chapter yet so please excuse any errors. Also, PLEASE review! :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing. Duh. :)

Chapter 5: Ayame

Ayame Tenjou, a light brown haired 20 year old stood up from the curb when she saw her escort arriving in a jeep. The driver was a few years older than her and his long brown hair was braided back. She picked up her sack and walked over to the jeep. She nodded a greeting and smiled, trying to hide the fact that she my mildly annoyed at having to wait so long. The driver had been over an hour late. He nodded back and motioned to the seat beside him. Ayame tossed her bags in the back and sat in the front. The driver put the jeep into gear and did a U-turn to head straight back to where he had come from.

"So you're the new engineer, huh? What's your name?" He asked after a while.

"Ayame Tenjou." The girl beside him replied.

"I'm Duo Maxwell. I pilot the Deathscythe Gundam. Glad to have you on board. Were kinda shorthanded." Duo laughed and scratched the back of his head.

"I bet. You guys aren't exactly the most popular with OZ." Duo chuckled.

"At least we got somebody with a sense of humor." Ayame grinned. The jeep drove on the back roads. Ayame leaved back on the seat and closed her eyes. She was too keyed up for a nap so she opened her eyes after a while. The drive was short and uneventful. They arrived within a couple of hours.

Duo parked the jeep beside the base, and Quatra ran out to meet him.

"Hew Duo! Trowa and Wufei are back but listen, have you seen Heero? He hasn't checked in yet. Relena wanted to know where he was."

"No Quatra, I haven't seen Heero. Knowing him, he probably stopped to blow something up along the way. Relena must be crazy about him. Too bad. I don't think he is as fond of her as she is for him." The two laughed and Ayame stepped out of the jeep, grabbing her stuff from the back.

"Oh, you better get on the phone. Hilde wanted to talk to you earlier." Quatra stated. Duo sighed and nodded. Quatra grinned. "Looks like Heero isn't the only one with girl problems." Duo swung half heartedly at Quatra, missing intentionally.

"Oh," Duo started, "This is Ayame Tenjou." Quatra was blank for a second, and then it dawned on him.

"Oh yeah! The new engineer. Good to meet you!" He shook Ayame's hand while attempting to stifle a yawn. "I'm off to bed, I had a long night."Duo nodded as Quatra headed into the building. Ayame was shown around by Duo. They concluded their tour at the room Ayame would be staying in. It was right next to the repair bay, so she wouldn't have to walk across the whole facility just to reach it. Ayame noticed a closed door next to her room and asked what was in there. When Duo answered that nothing was in there, she asked why the door was shut.

"I'm not sure. Trowa!" Duo called "why is that door shut?" Trowa glanced at the door then back to Duo.

"Quatra brought back a shuttle pilot girl and her two cats. Evidently he was caught while looking for information on the space colony and she flew him back to earth in her shuttle. At least, that's what Quatra told me. She is sleeping in there." Duo nodded and Ayame walked into her room and put her stuff down.

Wufei approached Duo and Trowa.

"I just got a radio message from Heero. He said that he is in the woods a little ways from here. He says he is pretty close, but deep in the woods, away from any major roads." Duo blinked.

"Did he say anything else?" Wufei nodded.

"He said that he is in the company of a blonde haired girl named Meika Hou. They're going to be here as soon as they can. And not to come get them." Trowa frowned and Duo leaned against the wall thoughtfully.

"Well, at least if he spent the night out, he spent it with a girl." Duo laughed, and then became serious. "When have we ever listened to him before? I say we take a jeep and go looking for them. The weather was cold last night and its going to be even colder tonight." Trowa and Wufei nodded and Duo looked at Ayame.

"You stay here all right? Get used to the new place. We're going out to look for Heero." He reached into a drawer in the hallway and pulled out a sharp shooter and handed it and a walkie-talkie to Ayame.

"Lets us know if someone we don't know gets into the facility, and use that to shoot them. Just disable them though. We would want them alive to find out who they are." Ayame nodded and the guys left. She sat on her bed and watched the entrance to the security room across the hall. She had no real reason for watching it, except the security screens were in view. She got bored and leaned back, wandering how long it would be until the boys got back.


	5. Chapter 6 and 7

Hello again everyone! Here are the next two chapters! I have put them together because they are very related. (I could have made it a single chapter actually... ^_^' ) A lot of you are reading yet I haven't gotten a lot of reviews... ah well. Please enjoy these chapters!

Chapter 6: Discussions

When Meika awoke, she saw Heero was not in the lean-to. She sat up quickly and looked around, holding his jacket close to her. She saw where he had exited through the branches. She crawled though and shivered as the cold snowy air replaced the warmth stocked from the fire.

"Heero!" She called softly. Meika saw her motorcycle was still there. She crept through the overhanging branches that were heavy with snow. Then Meika heard his voice. It sounded like he was talking to someone.

Meika slunk closer to hear his conversation.

"Yes, Wufei. Don't come after us. We'll be there as soon as we can. Heero out." He clicked off the portable radio and put it in the bag.

"You can stop hiding behind the tree Meika." Meika jumped, startled that he realized she was there. She came out and blushed.

"I'm sorry. I was wondering where you were." She laughed embarrassed, and looked down.

"Oh! Thank you so much for this!" Meika held his jacket out to him, "I would have frozen without it." Heero regarded her for a moment and sighed.

"You keep it. I have more, and we still have a ways to go. It wouldn't be productive for you to get hypothermia out here, especially since there is no way I could carry you with my arm like this." He stated walking past her.

Meika blushed and slipped the jacket on and followed him.

"We had better get started if we're going to walk to the hanger." Heero stated when she caught up to him. Meika blinked. Of course they were going to have to walk. They still had no way of tipping the motorcycle back up. Meika nodded to Heero. Suddenly, she heard a roaring sound. Turning back around she say a huge fighter plane bearing down on them. The enigma on the side was clearly that of OZ. Heero turned and ran from the aircraft.

"What's wrong!" Meika shouted over the roar of the plane. Then the fighter began shooting at the two of them. They both rolled out of the way.

"Why do you not have a secure radio! One that can't be traced?" Heero demanded once they were back on their feet. Meika frowned.

"I wasn't planning on actually using it, I was going to sell it for some cash."She replied. The fighter began shooting again but Meika didn't realize it fast enough and Heero shoved her to the ground to keep her from being hit. As soon as the shots were over he grabbed her hand and pulled her up, running towards their camp.

When they reached the camp, Meika seized the stuff from inside the lean-to. Running outside, she hurried to catch up with Heero. She noticed he was limping slightly, but decided to ignore this and keep running.

Seemingly out of nowhere a jeep burst over the snow bank. At the wheel was a brown haired man with his hair in a long braid. He stopped the jeep near them. There were two other men in the jeep with him.

"Heero! Let's go!" The driver yelled, grinning broadly. Heero considered ignoring Duo and continuing to run, but the fighter changed his mind as it shot another volley. Heero clambered into the back and pulled Meika up with him. Duo turned the jeep 180 degrees and barreled through the underbrush.

The fighter chased them a distance before Duo plunged the jeep into a dark tunnel underground. He drove them through the winding pathway. They emerged into daylight a short time later. They continued driving in silence a bit until they stopped at a large building. Meika only assumed this was their base.

"I told you not to come after us." Heero said quietly. Duo shrugged.

"I didn't want to let you have all the fun, so we drove over and joined the party. Come on Heero, give me some thinks for saving your tail." The group began to walk inside the building. Meika followed behind them.

At the door to meet them was another girl with a sharp shooter in her hand. When this girl saw who was approaching she let them pass, closing the double doors behind them. She watched Meika uncertainly. Heero continued down a side hall, but the main group walked to a larger room with a table in the center.

"Where is Heero going?" Meika asked Duo.

"Hm? Oh, probably just to his quarters to call Relena, I guess. You should stay with us for now." He said as he ushered her into the larger room. Quatra walked in yawning.

"Hey Quatra." Duo said. Quatra gave Meika a fleeting glance before launching into conversation with the others. Meika stayed in a corner by herself and waited for Heero to come back.

After about 5 minutes he returned. "Relena said that tomorrow OZ leaders are meeting. Should we attack?" Heero stated. There was a brief silence and then nods from the whole room. Heero looked vaguely satisfied. He turned to Meika.

"You will have to stay out of the way tomorrow. It would be best if you and the engineer stayed to guard the area." Meika was indignant.

"I can help!" She protested.

"How? What skills do you have?" Duo asked. Meika noticed everyone in the room staring at her.

"I can pilot just about anything, and I'm good in infiltration." She responded without missing a beat. Duo paused.

"Can you get us in without OZ noticing five Gundam units?" Meika thought for a moment.

"I can get you in and keep them from noticing five gundams until they are being fired upon." Meika answered.

"Let's give her a chance." Heero interjected on her behalf.

"I guess," Duo started, "There's not much chance of you betraying us seeing as your responsible for the deaths of three people in the most respect flight academy in the country." Meika silently congratulated herself.

A mewing sound caught everyone's attention. In the doorway was Take. It meowed again and padded over to Quatra. When it reached him it jumped in his lap.

"This is Take, Katsumi's cat." Quatra explain almost apologetically. A second meow was heard from the doorway. This time Katsumi stood holding Yasu.

Meika regarded the older girl. She was pretty and didn't seem like she was going to hurt anyone. Meika smiled and extended her hand.

"I'm Meika Hou. Who are you?"

Meika Hou. The name of the girl Katsumi had been told to look out for. She studied the younger girl for a few moments. If Katsumi were in the company of these people, Quatra's friends, then Katsumi decided she would bear it for now. She took the offered hand and shook it.

"Katsumi Otakawan. You're already quite famous Meika." Meika blushed a little and shifted uncomfortably. Heero's eyes narrowed at the girl called Katsumi.

Katsumi scanned the room and found Quatra, Take helped my meowing loudly.

"I'm sorry, did we interrupt anything?" Katsumi asked. Quatra shook his head no, but Heero and the others nodded.

"Were discussing plans for attacking an OZ conference tomorrow." Heero answered. Katsumi noticed his cold tone.

'He doesn't trust me. I guess Quatra is more trusting then the others, and they think he was wrong to bring me here. Guess they're right in a way. I could easily redeem myself for the incident at the spaceport by handing OZ the 'terrorists' and Meika Hou.' Katsumi sighed. There was no way that she would give OZ victory by handing over Quatra and his comrades. Meika Hou maybe, but that would probably upset someone. Katsumi glanced at Heero.

"All right then. I didn't mean to disturb you. Take!" The calico walked over and followed her back to her room. She shut the door behind her.

"Nobody except Quatra and maybe even Meika, likes or trusts me here." Katsumi sighed as she lay back on the bed with her head supported by her arms. She wasn't even aware of dozing off.

Chapter 7: Friends?

Katsumi woke up a short time later hearing voices outside her door.

"-destroyed. It's dangerous having her here. One call to OZ and we're history." She heard Duo say. There was agreement from three other voices.

"But she can be trusted! She helped me get away from OZ, why would she give us to them?" Quatra protested.

"Because it was just you then. Now it's all of us. If she doesn't do it to redeem herself, then it'd be for the money." Heero said quietly. Again, agreement. Katsumi realized that they were talking about her. The doorknob began to turn, before she heard Quatra tackle Heero to keep him from entering the room.

Katsumi took the distraction to open the window and climb out, carrying her belongings. The cats followed her. She tripped over something in the grass and picked it up. It was a sword. She hooked it over her shoulder and ran. She ducked behind a tree when she heard someone come to the window. It was Heero. He slammed his fist on the windowsill before retreating back into the room. Katsumi bolted from her hiding place in the woods. She found a supply garage and was rummaging around for things she could use when she heard people coming. She ducked out the back. What she didn't realize was that Wufei and Trowa were coming to the back side. She almost knocked Trowa over. Wufei seized her by her left arm and shouted that he had her. Katsumi struggled, but in vein. She then remembered the sword. She drew it, startling Wufei into letting her go. She then swung at Trowa Missing wildly.

Heero and Duo came up behind her. Duo grabbed her arms and pinned them behind her back. Heero took the sword from her grasp. He tossed the sword aside and leveled his gun at Katsumi. She struggled but that was unnecessary. Katsumi looked up when another figure appeared beside her. Meika. Meika put her hand gently on Heero's shoulder and used the other to slowly take the gun from him. Heero had an indecipherable look on his face.

"We really should find out where her loyalties lie first, before you kill her."Meika mentioned. "If she's really good in a fight and if she is loyal to this operation and not OZ, then you would be killing a valuable fighter., or intelligence officer, if she is good with computers. And she has already proved she can fly. Besides, I think Quatra's right. She won't call OZ. She could have done that at any time. She wasn't exactly being supervised. A call to OZ would have been easy. Heero stared at Meika intently.

"Why are you so sure about her?" Heero asked Meika. Meika took something out of her pocket and handed it to Heero. Katsumi recognized it as her picture of her family. Katsumi's heart leapt hopefully. On the back was the oath she had made for herself to find any way possible t the down OZ. Even if it were by herself. Heero stared coldly at Katsumi.

"Fine we'll trust her for now." Duo let her go, and sighed. 'It's not like Heero to listen to anyone once he's made up his mind.' Duo though laughing to himself as he gazed at Meika. Heero handed Katsumi back the picture of her family. Trowa and Wufei left with Heero behind them. Duo ran to catch up with Heero. Meika handed Katsumi her sword.

"Thanks for saving my tail. I really should avoid that sword, I nearly killed myself with it." Katsumi said, embarrassed. Meika laughed. Katsumi found it hard not to like this girl.

"It's okay. You'll be able to use it with practice. I can teach you if you want. I learned how to use a sword at the academy."Katsumi agreed. They talked as they headed back, making them the last one's there. Heero called to Meika when they reached the building, so Katsumi went back to her quarters. Quatra met her half way there. He looked both relived and surprised to see her there. She waved smiling lopsidedly.

Katsumi went to her quarters and sat on her bed wondering what to do. A few moments later Meika came in and offered to help Katsumi work on her sword skills. Katsumi agreed and the younger girl led the older to a place they wouldn't be disturbed too often.

Please Review! Please please please?


	6. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Repairs and a Warm Bed

"He's taking too much of a chance with her. She could easily betray us regardless." Ayame heard Duo say as he walked in. Inwardly, she shrugged. She didn't see anything wrong with the girl. Sure, she was strange, carrying around two cats with her wherever she went, but there was nothing wrong with her.

Ayame went back to the repair bay to get to work repairing the missile cannons for Quatra's Sandrock Gundam. It would have to be operational for the raid the next day on the OZ compound.

"Ayame!" She perked up at hearing her name a while later. She pushed herself out from under the missile launcher segment of the cannon on a trolley platform. Duo was standing there looking at her. Ayame wiped her hands on a cloth. Duo immediately started laughing.

"What? What's so funny?"

"You have the biggest grease spot I've ever seen on your forehead." Duo commented still laughing

Ayame ran her hand across her forehead and sure enough, there was grease there. She saw Duo trying to hold in his laughter and threw a monkey wrench at him. He barley caught it, as Ayame began laughing.

"All right, what do you want?"She asked when they had stopped laughing.

"What? I can't come in here just to laugh at you?" He backed up in mock terror when Ayame picked up the fire extinguisher.

"No. What do you want?"

"Heero wants you to stay here tomorrow. This is a high risk operation and he doesn't want us to lose our only full time engineer."Ayame raised an eyebrow and nodded.

Duo peered at the launcher.

"You know what. I never thought I would see this thing working again." Ayame shrugged and lay back down on the trolley. She pushed herself back under the launcher to resume work. She heard Duo leave right after he slid her the monkey wrench along the floor.

She had just finished working on it when Meika entered the repair bay. By now she estimated it to be around 10 at night. Meika smiled at her and waved.

"You're the engineer here right? I'm Meika Hou." Ayame smiled

"Yep! I'm Ayame!"

"Have you got this thing working yet?" Meika questioned as she walked over to the other girl. Ayame was shocked when Meika suddenly started screaming. Heero was the first to come rushing through the door, followed by Katsumi and Quatra. Heero had his gun drawn as he rushed to Meika's side.

Meika, still screaming, hid behind Heero and pointed at the floor near Ayame's foot. Ayame burst out laughing when she saw the small spider beside her foot. She was actually quite surprised that the spider was still there after all of Meika's screaming. Katsumi sighed and shook her head as Heero walked over and stomped on the spider, effectively killing it. Heero walked back over to Meika and patted her on the back while asking Ayame if the missile launcher had been fixed.

"Fire it up." Quatra said. Ayame nodded and pushed the switch. The launcher sputtered to life.

"Well I'm impressed." Heero said. Ayame blushed a bit. Katsumi clapped as Ayame shut the launcher down.

Katsumi turned and asked Meika. "So think I'm good enough with the sword yet?" Meika considered her for a moment.

"No definitely not. You need to practice a good deal more." Meika answered. Ayame perked up. She always enjoyed watching people use the sword in tournaments. She'd never actually seen someone learn to use one.

"Your teaching Katsumi to use a sword? Cool." Quatra stated. Heero was less enthusiastic about the idea than Quatra or Ayame, but he didn't say anything on the matter.

"I suggest we all go to bed. We'll need all our energy tomorrow at the OZ compound." He told Meika as he walked off. There was a muffled agreement between Katsumi and Ayame as Meika yawned. Ayame and Katsumi split off to their respective rooms.

It wasn't until everyone was gone that Meika realized that she hadn't been given a place to sleep.

"Eeehhhhaaaa!" She sighed in frustration and decided to sleep on the small couch in the meeting room where she was earlier. She walked over and kicked off her boots. It would be a long day tomorrow, she secretly hoped that she wouldn't screw it up. She fell asleep almost immediately.

She was awakened the next morning to the sound of people bustling around. She also awoke to realize that she was lying in a bed. She looked around groggily as her eyes made out a dark green comforter. Lying on top of her. She surmised that this was Heero's room seeing the mass amounts of green tank tops hanging in the closet to her left. Her suspicions were confirmed when Heero walked in the room.

"Relena and Hilde called this morning, the meeting has been moved. We'll have to be there in an hour to stay on schedule." Heero stated before turning to leave.

"Heero!" Meika called and he turned to look at the blonde girl in his bed. "Thank you." She smiled as Heero nodded and walked out the door closing it behind him.

Meika got up and got dressed, putting her boots back on and the jacket Heero had given her. She walked out to begin getting ready for the raid.


	7. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Something forgotten

Ayame walked out of her room in the morning and noticed that everyone seemed to be in such a rush even though they weren't scheduled to leave for another three hours. Duo waved good morning to her as he rushed by. Ayame met Katsumi in the hall.

"Gosh, they're in a hurry." Ayame said quietly.

Katsumi nodded. "Apparently the meeting has been moved and they need to leave within the hour."

Ayame sighed and decided to lie back down because everyone was leaving anyways. Duo had said not to call them because it could be traced back to the hangar. When she got up about an hour after everyone had left, she found Katsumi practicing with her sword.

Deciding not to disturb her Ayame walked into the video room, she saw that there was nothing in there except quite a few spider webs and a lot of dust. She left and browsed around the security room looking at all the monitors before deciding to go to the control room.

It was a mess. Papers were scattered everywhere. Ayame sighed and bent to at least neaten the pile. She stacked the papers that were on the desk. She then reached behind the computer to pull out more papers.

She found a pile underneath the desk and another under the table. It took her a good half hour to find all the papers and stack them neatly on the table. Ayame sat back to survey her work. Then she saw a lone piece of paper she missed sticking out of the drawer in the desk. Seizing it, she was startled to find what it read.

Codes for getting into the OZ compound:

Front door: 8572639 Ventilation: 3982291458 Back door: 11029

It was written in Heero's hand writing along with a memo to remind himself to bring the paper so he could tell the new codes to Meika. Ayame was immediately worried. Without the code they would not be able to get inside and would be caught. Meika had said that she knew the code, but that was no doubt the old ones.

Ayame quickly walked back to the repair bay where Katsumi was practicing. Upon seeing her worried face Katsumi knew something was wrong and stopped going through her exercises.

Not a word was said as Ayame handed Katsumi the paper.

"We have to get to them before OZ finds them first." Ayame stated. Katsumi agreed and walked over to the photocopier. She copied the codes and handed the original to Ayame.

"Let's split up and go two different ways to get there. That way, if one of us is caught, the other can still get to them. If both of us make it though, then it will be better to have two people help them if they are in trouble." Ayame agreed. Katsumi sheathed the sword and hooked it around her shoulders. She took a shoulder gun holster with two guns and clipped it around her left shoulder.

Ayame chose a rifle and sharp shooter. She also decided to take a pistol for a trump card in case she lost the other two weapons. The two of them walked to the entrance. Ayame headed right as Katsumi adjusted the gun holster so the kittens could sit in their accustomed places.

"I'll take a jeep. How are you going to go?" Ayame asked.

Katsumi grinned. "The old fashioned way. I'm going to walk, besides, I can't drive."

Ayame raised her eyebrow as she continued to the jeep parking lot. "You can pilot shuttles and fighters, and yet you can't drive a jeep…"

Katsumi smiled and headed off into the woods holding her copy of the codes.

Ayame chose one of the stealth jeeps, ones that were nearly silent. She fired it up and backed it out onto the path. She drove down the path. She knew how to get to the OZ compound and it would be just a matter of time before she got there. Unfortunately, she didn't know how much time the Gundam pilots had.


	8. Chapter 10

A thanks to Ghosty who pointed out some errors in the pervious chapters. From this chapter fowards Quatre's name should be spelled correctly. Please forgive me! I would go change the previous chapters but I'm too lazy...

I dont own GW...

Chapter 10: Missing

Meika was in a stealth jeep. Upon reaching the compound, she stopped the jeep in the woods. The Gundams stayed well back to avoid detection. She crept through the underbrush, crouching low, too keep from being seen herself. The intercom on the headset she wore crackled to life.

"Meika, how are the conditions?" Heero asked her. Meika scanned the area.

"Three guards outside the door, they should be no problem as long as they don't sound an alarm." She whispered. She crept forward and threw a large rock at some bushes near the guards. Two went to investigate leaving one behind. Meika lifted up the tranquilizer gun and fired at the guard. It hit her target, and he fell.

Startled, the other two guards turned. One of them lifted a walkie-talkie and Meika took him down. Then she shot the other one and he crumpled as well.

"I'm headed in." Meika hurried thought the security camera to the door.

"The code is…"Heero started, "wait a minute, Duo, do you have the codes?"Evidently receiving a negative, Heero asked the others. Nobody else had the codes. Heero cursed, but his words were drowned out by an offices walkie-talkie.

"Report in Jackson." Came an officer's stern voice. When he received no answer, the officer guessed the situation correctly. Meika heard him tell the other soldiers that terrorists had arrived and they were to immediately report to the compound's entrance. Meika began to back up quickly.

"What's wrong?" Heero asked worriedly when Meika began backpedaling.

"An officer has found out our presence, I think we should leave." Meika answered. Barely were the words out of her mouth when shots rang out over her head. Startled she turned and bolted to the woods.

"It's one of the terrorists! Get her!" She heard someone shout.

"Run back and get the codes. We'll try to hold them off." Heero said. "Be careful Meika."

She agreed. "You too Heero."

Meika jumped into the jeep and fired up the engine. She fled from the scene taking a back trail. The soldiers were too preoccupied by the appearance of the five Gundams to follow her.

Meika drove as fast as she could, paying little attention to her surroundings in her urgency to retrieve the codes. In her hurry, Meika drove across a fallen tree. The jeep which was only used for stealthy movements and not heavy terrain became stuck. Since she could not waste however many hours it might take for the jeep to be freed from this fallen tree, she had to get out and go by foot. She estimated that she was around 40 miles from the base.

Meika made sure that the gun strapped to her right boot was secure and started off towards the base on foot.

She had walked for 15 minutes when she heard crackling in the bushes. Fearing it might be an OZ official that had followed, she drew her gun and crept closer to the bush. She knelt and peeked through the bushes.

Someone was sitting on the riverbank, muttering to themselves about the Gundam pilots doing something. The bushes obscured the person, so Meika couldn't distinguish who it was. She made sure the gun's safety was off and leaped out, hoping to catch this person unaware.

The unknown person gave out a startled yell and whirled to face her drawing out a sword. Meika halted when she came face to face with a panting Katsumi. She straightened up and regarded Katsumi for a few moments.

"What are you doing here?" Meika asked as Katsumi sheathed her sword.

"Coming to give you this." The girl held out the photocopied sheet of paper with the codes on it. Meika blinked absentmindedly, and accepted it.

"Mind if I go along with you?" Katsumi asked. Meika agreed. Katsumi stood up and the two of them started back.

Katsumi jogged alongside the taller girl to keep up with her long strides. She had a feeling that the Gundam pilots were in trouble since Meika had been sent back to get the codes by herself, instead of at least one of the guys going with her.

"So what were the conditions when you left?" Katsumi asked.

"Guards were pilling in, and they knew of our presence." She answered. Katsumi winced. They reached the jeep quickly. Luckily having two people made freeing the jeep a much simpler task. After several tries the jeep was set free, so they were able to drive the jeep back.

"I don't see them anywhere." Meika said sadly an hour later when they arrived back at the compound.

"They aren't hard to miss, where are they?" Katsumi wondered aloud. Suddenly they heard shouts and a scuffle in progress. Curious the two girls snuck closer.

Looking through a bush they could see OZ guards, but what they were doing was what caught their attention. Ayame was surrounded by the guards and was trying to fight all five of them off using a stick and her gun. Meika and Katsumi exchanged glances and drew their guns.

Ayame was having quite a bit of trouble. She'd only taken one guy down and already she was getting tired. The stick and the pistol kept the others at bay, but she knew it wouldn't be for long. Silently she cursed herself. If she had enough sense not to drive the jeep beyond the trees, they never would have found her. Gritting her teeth she kicked at one of them startling the others. He went out like a light. That's when they decided to stop playing around.

Ayame brandished the stick and hit another guy across the face with it. He reeled back, but soon recovered, grabbing the stick from her hand and breaking it in two. He raised his sharpshooter. That's when Meika and Katsumi burst from the trees and tackled the guards. With a three to five ratio, things were looking up.

Meika and Katsumi used their advantage of surprise to take down all the guards. When that was over Katsumi dragged the bodies into the bushes to hide them, while Ayame check to make sure no one had noticed the fight. Meika was still worried about Heero and tried to reach him on her headset to no avail.

"Where are they, there is no sign they were even here except a smoldering building." Meika sighed.

Ayame heard someone coming and ducked. The other two girls followed suit.

"It was rather easy to retain the pilots. Luckily the boss predicted their arrival and we were ready for them." One guard was saying to another, who agreed.

"Well now we know what happened to Heero and the others." Meika said when the guards were out of earshot.

"Question is, how are we going to get in there and rescue them? People are bound to notice three non official looking girls wandering around the halls. The codes are useless now. I'm sure they changed them when they found out we were trying to get in." Ayame said.

"I know. That means the only way in is through the front door, where we are certainty going to be noticed by about thirty guards or so." Meika responded.

"We could always go in as one of them." Katsumi interjected motioning to the unconscious guards she had hidden. Meika smiled and agreed it was a good idea. The three girls stripped the uniforms off three of the female guards and put them on.

"Well this is different." Ayame remarked as she straightened the name tag reading 'Anna Voski'. Meika had become 'Myra Spielin' and Katsumi was 'Jessica Hemmingway.' They tucked their hair into their hats as was protocol for women there. Adjusting the visors so their eyes were covered, the girls stepped out to go rescue the Gundam pilots. No one cast a glance their way.

They got into the compound and past the other guards easily, without raising alarm. They found a back room with no recording devices and relaxed.

"All right, we're in. How do we find out where Heero is being kept?" Meika whispered.

"What you don't care about the others?" Ayame asked slyly. Katsumi chuckled and Meika frowned.

"Shush, it's obvious that you're here for Duo, Ayame." Ayame blushed and said nothing. It was that obvious?

"All right now, let's stop bickering and find a way to rescue them all."Katsumi suggested.

"What about you and Quatre?" Meika and Ayame asked at once.

"What's going on between me and Quatre is none of your business! Let's get working on rescuing them please."Katsumi responded, blushing. Ayame smiled.

"Well, we could always walk up to the door and ask to be let in. If we've gotten this far then it's possible that we can go the rest of the way." Ayame suggested after several plans were rejected, counting the one that included blowing up the compound while they were still inside. This new plan was met with approval. Looking at the clock Ayame found that it was almost seven.

Deciding to wait another three or four hours, the three of them napped. Ayame set her watch to ten-thirty.


	9. Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Rescue

The watch alarm went off on schedule, at ten-thirty. Meika shook the others awake and they stood. Coming quietly out of the back room, the trio looked at a flyer in a closed newsstand to try and find out where the others were being kept.

"Well this isn't good. They're being held in the highest security room they have, about three stories up."Meika whispered. Ayame winced, but Katsumi wasn't paying attention. Instead she was looking at a floor map on the wall.

"Hello! Earth to Katsumi! What are you doing?" Meika hissed. Katsumi glanced at her before responding.

"Trying not to look suspicious by whispering. I'm listening though so go on." She resumed studding the floor map.

After deciding the best way to get up to the room the pilots were being kept in the girls stopped cautiously before turning the corner, prepared to pull out their weapons if necessary. But there were no guard in sight.

Meika sighed and pointed to the reason there were no guards. Who needed guards when you had a retinal and ID scan for access anyways.

Meika bit her lip worriedly. "There is no way in without raising an alarm, we can't get past the retinal scan."

Katsumi pulled a laser knife from her pocket and Meika blinked.

"There is always ways around a retinal scan." She shouldered past Ayame and pointed the laser at the retinal scan.

"What are you doing?" Ayame hissed.

"Trying to teach it to recognize my retinal scan as one of the highest ranking officials in OZ, so it doesn't question my entry." Katsumi answered quietly.

"Done." She positioned herself to let the retinal scan check for authorization. The door unlatched and swung open. Pulling their hats to cover their eyes, in case someone was in the room, the trio entered the dark chamber.

Katsumi let her breath escape as the retinal scan accepted her. She had only read about how to fool it, never actually tried it. She couldn't see in the darkness, she was aware however, of Meika ahead of her and Ayame to her right.

Katsumi was glad for the comforting weight of the guns against her shoulder, and the sword on her back. She could detect people in the room, but didn't want to say anything in case this was the wrong room.

Meika quickly check the room for security cameras and windows. Finding that the room was free of both, she flipped on the light.

On the floor were Heero, Quatre, Trowa, and Wufei. They were all mostly without injury. They eyed the three girls with suspicion, unable to do anything because they were bound. Katsumi noticed that Heero was watching Meika with a look of interest, and a lot of suspicion. None of the boys could recognize them because of their uniforms, the way their hair was tucked up, and the fact that the hats were pulled down and covered their eyes.

Meika handed Ayame something, a pocket knife. Meika gestured to the laser knife while looking at Katsumi. Katsumi nodded and flipped it open.

Meika crouched to Heero's bonds, Ayame worked on Trowa and Katsumi knelt beside Quatre.

"Who are you guys?" Quatre whispered as Katsumi began to carefully cut his bonds. Ayame giggled slightly. Katsumi looked up at Quatre and grinned.

"Katsumi!" Quatre exclaimed quickly, amazed. Heero immediately looked up at Meika, meeting her eyes. Katsumi put her finger to her lips to quiet Quatre. Meika helped Heero to his feet. Ayame had already finished freeing Trowa and began working on Wufei. When she stood up her face looked concerned.

"Where is Duo?" She asked.

"The same place the guards took Relena and Hilde when they were discovered." Wufei said bitterly. "Better hope for his sake, that he's even still alive."

Heero looked at Meika.

"Please tell me you all brought weapons." He asked her. She laughed lightly and handed him one of her guns, Katsumi gave her extra to Quatre.

"SHUSH!" Wufei said. Everyone quieted. "Someone's coming."

There was a closet in the room so the girls hid in there. The boys set themselves up to look like they were still bound, hiding their weapons. Meika turned the light off and shut the door on her way into the closet.

A guard entered the room a moment later and flipped the light on. He was holding a bound Duo. Ayame gasped when she saw the bad condition he was in. The guard stiffened at the sound, sensing that someone who wasn't supposed to be there was present.

Tossing Duo roughly to the ground, he walked over to the closet to investigate. As he opened the door, Meika threw her foot against his chest in a hard kick. The guard hit his head on the wall and landed, alive but unconscious.

"Let's go! The guard probably tripped the alarm alerting the other security officers, we should have about five minutes until they get here." Katsumi warned. Ayame unbound Duo and pulled him up, putting his arm around her shoulder so she could support him. The group turned and ran down the stairwell as fast as they were able.

Their progress was too slow however, because Ayame was carrying Duo. Fifteen officers waited at the bottom for them.

"This way!" Meika shouted, dashing down a side corridor. Everybody followed including the guards. Wufei went to the other side of Duo to help Ayame support him so that they could run faster. Meika drew her gun and fired at the guards behind them, taking a few of them out, to help buy them a little more time.

"Where does this corridor lead Katsumi? You were the one looking at the floor plan?" Meika shouted.

"I think it leads to the laboratory facility!" she called back.

"That's where they had Duo taken." Quatre informed them.

"Then we'll head there to see if that's where those other two were taken, Relena and Hilde, right?" Katsumi asked. Heero nodded. The group hid in a side room to allow the guards to pass before making their way to laboratory.

When they reached the facility everyone was shocked to see a mangled body on the floor. The body was covered in blood and obviously dead.

"Hilde." Trowa said quietly. Ayame thought she was going to be sick. They heard a whimper from the other side of the room and turned to see Relena hung on a pole. She was alive, but injured.

"Heero." She muttered. Heero walked over and untied her from the pole as she collapsed into his arms.

"I knew you would come." She whispered.

"Can you walk?" He asked her. He looked her over, she didn't seem to be to injured, just exhausted.

"I- I think so." She replied dropping her arms from around him.

"We should get going." Katsumi stated seriously, glancing at Meika who didn't look too happy at that moment. "I think the ventilation system would be the best way to get out undetected."

Duo chose that moment to regain continuousness. Ayame hovered over him worriedly.

"Uhh… What's going on?" he asked.

"We're getting out of here. Hold on Duo." Ayame answered.

"Lets go!" Meika said anxiously. The group dashed down the hall following Katsumi's directions. Ahead they saw the vent opening. Trowa was the first one in, followed by Wufei. Ayame pulled herself up and, with the help of Wufei, helped Duo up. Heero lifted Relena into the vent as a bullet hit the wall right by Meika's head. She ducked out of reflex and turned to see who the attacker was. It was Blake. He was holding a smoking pistol.

"So you're still alive?" He said laughingly as he raised the pistol. "Not for very much longer." Meika's legs felt like they were lead. Blake fired.

It all seemed to happen in slow motion. Blake's finger hit the trigger and the gun went off. Meika braced herself. Suddenly a dark shape hurtled in front of her, Heero. He took the shots in his upraised arms and his side, and his right shoulder. Then time flow seemed to snap back to normal.

"Heero!" Meika cried as she was shocked out of her stupor. Pulling her gun out almost instantly, she fired at Blake. Blake still recovering from shooting Heero, was unable to dodge. One bullet hit him right between the eyes and he crumpled, dead. Heero sank to the ground against the wall beside Meika holding his side. She pulled him up as Trowa helped to get him into the vent. Meika hoisted herself up as the group began to head back. Supporting their wounded the best they could, they were able to make it back to the jeep without detection.

"Lets get out of here." Ayame said as she got in the driver's seat and drove back to the compound.


	10. Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Discovered

When they arrived at the compound Wufei and Meika carried Heero to his room, with Relena close on their heels. They laid him on the bed and Wufei left, leaving the two girls with an unconscious Heero. Meika got to the first aid box and was going to start bandaging his wounds when Relena stopped her.

"Let me do it!" She growled at Meika, grabbing the box from her hands. "If it weren't for you he wouldn't even be in this condition!"

Meika watched sadly as Relena took care of Heero, when she was confident that Heero was being taken care of properly, she left the room.

Elsewhere, Ayame was tending to Duo. He was jumping around as Ayame tried to put the disinfectant on his wounds.

"You have to be still!" She said and pushed him back onto the couch.

"Noooo… It tickles!" He laughed.

"Well if you want to get better you have to let me do this!" Ayame stated as she pushed him back onto the couch and straddled him to get him to sit still. Realizing the awkwardness of the position they were in, they blushed.

"Sorry." She moved to get up when his hands wrapped around her waist and slid up her back pulling her closer to him.

"Don't be." Duo whispered in her ear before putting one hand on the back of her neck and pulling her in for a passion-filled kiss.

Meika walked back to Heero's room a few hours later to check on him. Peeking in the door she saw him sitting there with Relena, his back was to her, but she thought she could tell that he was eating something. This was a good sign. It meant that he was going to heal just fine.

"Thank you for saving me Heero." Relena gushed.

Heero sighed and looked down. "I didn't really save you. It was those three girls, they saved you and us."

"Who are they anyways? I haven't seen them around before." Relena said in a bitter tone.

"Katsumi, the one with the auburn hair, saved Quatre a few days ago. And Ayame, the shorter one, is the new full time engineer." Heero stated simply.

Meika who was listening from the door noticed he didn't mention her. Apparently Relena noticed this detail too.

"And the blonde you saved? Who is she?" Relena questioned further. It was obvious that she wasn't interested in the other two.

Heero thought for a moment. "I'm not sure that's any of your concern Relena." Relena looked taken aback. She was silent for a few moments then looked into Heero's eyes.

"You must know how I feel about you Heero! I always thought – thought after the war we could be together." Relena proclaimed. Meika watched the curiously from the door and gasped when the man she was falling in love with was kissed by this girl she had just met. Heero pushed Relena off him and looked to the door to see the source of the noise. He saw Meika standing there. He cursed.

"I'm…sorry." Meika stammered and ran from the scene. Heero turned back to Relena.

"Get out!" He yelled at her angrily.

"Heero? For her? You're leaving me for her?"

"Leaving you? We were never together! Now get out!" Heero was screaming at his point and Katsumi had come from her room down the hall to see if everything was okay. When she entered Heero's room she was greeted by Relena rushing out past her.

"Heero? I heard yelling. Is everything okay?" Katsumi questioned worriedly.

"Yeah, did Meika go past you?" he quickly inquired.

Katsumi nodded. "She looked upset, but said she was going for a walk." Heero put his head in his hands and leaned back on his bed thinking. Sensing that he wanted to be left alone, Katsumi left him to his thoughts.

Meika was wandering outside. It was a crisp night and there was a thin layer of snow on the ground, a good environment for clearing her head. She was upset, but she knew it wasn't her place to be. It's not like she and Heero were together. She want though a small gate and into the brush beyond.

She wandered around for about an hour before she decided she better head back. Then she heard voices. She didn't recognize any of the voices, so she crouched low to the ground and crept forward. Peering through the bushes, she saw at least a dozen people huddled around a campfire. She couldn't see them clearly, but the OZ emblem on the military truck was enough to tell her who they were.

Apparently they were following the trail left by the jeep earlier. Meika could still see it in the snow. She gritted her teeth. She had to get back and warn the others, she was sure that their truck could move faster than her. Meika backed up, but she stepped on a twig on the ground. The noise seemed to resonate throughout the forest. The talking solders quieted.

As the solders got up to check it out, Meika backpedaled as quickly as she could, climbing a tree at the first oppturnity. Three of the soldiers passed under the tree. She prayed they wouldn't hear her breathing or have the intuition to look up.

"We better head out as soon as day breaks. I'm sure the noise we heard was a terrorist spy. He'll be headed back to warn his comrades that we're here." A solider said, shaking his head.

"At least some of them are injured, and that alone will slow them down." Another one stated.

Meika jumped from the tree when she was clear. Running as fast as she could, she followed the tire treads back to the base. It was almost daybreak when she reached the compound, panting and exhausted. Duo and Heero were on watch when she came to the door.

"Meika." Heero moved towards her. "We need to talk." He stated quietly.

"I know. But now isn't the time!" She retorted quickly

"What's wrong?" Duo asked. Meika sat in a chair and tried to catch her breath. When she could speak clearly, she told them the story. Heero's eyes narrowed and Duo's widened.

"We need to get out of here right away. If they were leaving at daybreak, which is now, we only have around fifteen minutes before they get here." Heero muttered, getting shakily to his feet. He moved down the hall to the vehicle bay to prepare a way of escape.

Duo woke everyone up by yelling at the top of his lungs that OZ solders were coming. Quatre came out of his room still putting on his shirt and closely followed by Katsumi. Trowa and Wufei left their rooms immediately, and went to go help Heero.

Ayame awoke and went to Duo's side.

"Everyone's awake!" Meika shouted to get Duo to stop yelling. Trowa poked his head in and said that they better hurry up, the stealth jeep was ready. Ayame and Duo went to the jeep while Katsumi helped Meika gather some weapons.

"Wait! Where is that Relena girl?" Meika asked.

"Oh she ran out shortly after you, I think Heero was yelling at her. She took one of the trucks and left." Katsumi answered. Meika nodded and went back to work.

"Take! Yasu!" Katsumi called as her two cats ran to her. Heero and Quatre loaded some rations into the jeep as Meika and Katsumi put in the weapons. When they were done Meika climbed into the driver seat.

"Everybody in?" She asked looking back. Heero nodded with the rest and Meika started up the jeep.

Ayame could see the solders arriving on the horizon as they drove away from the base and entered the tree line. She felt Duo put his arm around her. When she looked at him, his normal grinning expression was touched with concern.

"Anything the matter?" He asked. Ayame shook her head, smiling lightly.

"Nah, nothing at all." She assured him


	11. Chapter 13

Chapter 13: the Plan

Meika drove the jeep as fast as she dared. Heero sat in the seat beside her, loading the guns in case they were needed. She noticed him shooting glances at her out of the corner of her eye. Keeping her eyes on the trees ahead she sighed inwardly. She had once told Ummi that she wanted some adventure to spice up her boring life at the pilot academy.

_Well Ummi, I have the adventure, and the danger to go with it. But it's not what I expected._ She glanced at Heero. He looked straight into her eyes. Meika blushed and adverted her eyes into the road, where they belonged. Nope, definitely not what she expected. But she was happy things turned out this way.

She kept driving for the rest of the day. Stealth jeeps had a lot of fuel capacity, and they had great mileage. So they wouldn't need to refuel for a while. Meika stopped the jeep near a river. Heero looked surprised when she did.

"I think we should keep going. They might still follow us." Duo suggested speaking Heero's thoughts. Meika looked confused.

"Well there are no bridges over the river near here."She said matter of factly.

"This jeep has an underwater mode. Press the green switch and then the blue." Quatre informed her. She did and a plasti-glass dome slid over the top of the jeep. As she drove the vehicle into the water, the wheels folded underneath the jeep and a small propeller extended on the rear.

"This is like something out of a sci-fi flick!" Ayame said excitedly.

Meika steered the jeep down the river for another three hours before emerging onto dry land. It was dark, and everyone besides her and Heero seemed to be asleep.

"You should sleep." Heero said to her quietly. She nodded and leaned against the driver's door and closed her eyes.

Katsumi watched the night sky as the others slept. Quatre had fallen asleep beside her and her head was lying in his lap. She saw that Ayame had fallen asleep in Duo's arms. She noted with interest, that even though Meika and Heero were in seats next to each other, neither was leaning on the other in any way. Actually it seemed as though they both took special precautions to not sleep on the other. Katsumi frowned.

It had seemed as though their relationship was progressing over the last few days, but now it seemed as though they had taken a step back. _Had something happened?_ Katsumi wondered.

When Ayame awoke the next morning, Meika already had the jeep underwater and was driving again.

"Any idea where we're headed?" Ayame asked Meika. The blonde girl shook her head and sighed.

"Not really. But we can't keep traveling in this river forever. Eventually we would reach the Pacific Ocean. And then it's only a few thousand miles to America." Meika responded.

"Why don't we go there?" Duo said awakening.

"Didn't you just hear me say it as couple thousand miles? How are we to get there undetected?" By this time the entire group was awake.

"Why don't we go on a plane or a boat?" Katsumi suggested. Heero frowned.

"That's not going to be easy, but if that's the plan, a plane would be best." Heero added.

"Okay, so where do we want to go if we get there?" Meika said. She wasn't too sure about this plan.

"Albuquerque." Katsumi said immediately. Everyone stared at her and she blushed.

"I have connections there." She mumbled.

"We better take a flight that leaves at night so we won't be noticed." Heero pointed out.

"Is there an airport near here?" Duo asked.

Quatre nodded. "Relatively, the closest one was 300 miles north of the base." He responded.

"That means we would have to head across the river and keep going for nearly 200 miles." Meika said, discomfort in her voice.

_She has a reason to be uncomfortable_, Heero thought. _Going across all that land means that we're easier to be spotted by OZ. Our heat signature won't be covered by the cold water._ Heero sighed inwardly and leaned against his seat as they set forth.

For a long while everyone was quiet. Trowa and Wufei were clearly nervous; obvious by the way they kept glancing to the sky. Katsumi was writing something in a small book. Duo looked content with Ayame in his arms as she slept. Quatre was petting the kittens to keep them quiet, though it was hardly needed. The tense atmosphere kept them from making any real noise.

Around noon Duo handed out some rations to everyone. Meika chewed a granola bar thoughtfully. They were only moving at running pace. Around 10 miles an hour. That was as fast as the stealth jeep could take in this mode, so she continued driving at that pace for the rest of the day.

It was nearly morning again when she saw it: a small house in the middle of nowhere. Meika had kept driving while the others slept so they would make better time. She parked the jeep just in the tree line by the house and quietly stepped out. It turned out that they hadn't packed enough rations to last them all the way to Albuquerque where Katsumi had connections.

She crept up to the house silently, she wasn't going to risk these people seeing her for fear they supported OZ. Unfortunately, a man, slightly older then her, she guessed, stepped out of the house at that exact moment and saw her instantly.

He was tall, but muscular. His hair was black and short. Meika cursed herself for not bringing a weapon. The man however, just stared at her before speaking.

"Hey, can I help you?" Meika took a deep breath. She wasn't sure she could trust this guy yet.

"Actually, my friends and I are out of food, and we're on a rather long journey." Meika answered blushing a little, hoping that if she stuck close to the truth he wouldn't suspect anything.

"Oh." He laughed. "Well I didn't expect such a pretty girl to only be here looking for food. But that's fine. We have plenty to spare. Let me just go get it." The guy said walking off. But he got to the door and turned back.

"How many people are there?" He asked. Meika bit her lip not knowing if she should tell the truth.

"Eight, including me." She stated. The man blinked at her.

"Where are the others?" He questioned, his face looked confused by the fact that Meika was the only one there, if she had seven other people with her.

"In a jeep in the trees." She answered. The guy chuckled.

"Is that so? Well you all can come to breakfast if you would only tell me your name." He smirked and put out his hand. "I'm Benjirou Hankin. But people call me Ben."

"Meika Hou."She smiled and put her hand in his, but instead of shaking it as she thought he was going to do, he bent over and kissed the top of her hand. A bright blush spread across her cheeks.

"Meika Hou eh? I think I've heard of you on TV." Meika cringed, removed her hand from his and backed up a few feet. Ben surprised her when he laughed at her reaction. "Don't worry! We moved out here to get away from OZ!" He continued.

"We?" She questioned looking around.

"Yeah, me and my brother, he is in town now but he should be back soon. Why don't you go get your friends and I'll start breakfast." He grinned and walked back inside.

Heero was walking around the jeep when she got back.

"Where were you?" he asked. It looked as though he had a panicked look on his face.

"There is a house just over there." Meika pointed. "The owner invited us to breakfast."

Duo stirred, "I heard the word breakfast." Meika laughed and woke everyone else up before explaining the situation.

"Well maybe we can accept the offer; after all, if he really is against OZ, it is unlikely he'll turn us in." Quatre pointed out.

Heero mused over this. "He might just turn us in for the money offered for our capture." He said after a moment.

"Hey come on. We've eluded every bounty hunter so far, what makes you think a guy and his brother living in the middle of nowhere would be able to catch us." Trowa reasoned. There was murmured agreement. Heero frowned.

"So we go?" Meika asked. There were affirmatives. The group followed her back to the house. Ben was outside when they arrived.

"Hey beautiful!" He called. Meika blushed and looked down. Heero noticeably stiffened beside her.

"Wow you weren't kidding when you said eight people. I thought you were lying because you didn't trust me." Ben laughed and showed the group in. "Breakfast is still going, could be a few more minutes. Make yourself at home." Ayame and Duo sat back on a couch, happy to be sitting somewhere comfortable. Trowa and Wufei made themselves comfortable at a table, while Quatre and Katsumi looked at some pictures over the fireplace. Heero stayed close to Meika.

"Can I help you?" She offered to Ben. He smiled.

"Your presence here is enough flower." He said and looked at Heero when he glared at him; he then noticed Heero was injured. "Whoa, what happened to you?"

Trowa and Quatre tensed and looked at Heero. "Run in with OZ" He stated simply. Ben nodded.

"I'm Ben, my brother is Eiichi. He will be around shortly."

"Heero Yuy, This is Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton, Quatre Winner, Wufei Chang, Katsumi Otakawan, and Ayame Tenjou." Heero said pointing around the room. "You have obviously met Meika already" He added, his voice laced with annoyance.

"He- Heero." Meika whispered before suddenly collapsing. Heero reached out and caught her in his arms.

"Meika!" Heero called trying to rouse her. Katsumi ran over.

"She is probably exhausted, she has been driving for two days straight with no sleep." Katsumi reasoned.

"We can let her rest in my room." Ben suggested. Heero nodded and tried to pick her up but nearly dropped her since his wounds weren't completely healed.

"Let me." Ben took her from Heero's arms and carried her up the stairs to a small bedroom, and placed her on the bed. Heero was quick on his heels.

"You should stay here with her, she might feel disoriented when she wakes up, since she's never been in this room before." Ben said before walking out

Heero pulled a chair up next to the bed and leaned back in it. _Why the hell is she pushing herself so hard_, he thought. He looked at the girl sleeping before him and sighed, pushing a strand of hair from her face.

About an hour later Duo walked in carrying two plates of food.

"How is she?" He asked.

"Still sleeping." Heero looked down and put his head in his hands.

"She'll be fine, it's like Katsumi says, she just needs some rest." Duo handed Heero the plates. "Here, make her eat when she gets up, I think she has only had a granola bar in 2 days." Heero nodded and sat the plate down. "Ben said that she could rest here as long as she needs." Duo's statement was met with an auditable growl from Heero.

"As soon as she wakes up were leaving, I don't want her around him anymore than necessary. I don't trust him." Heero said through gritted teeth.

"Whoa, do I detect a bit of jealously?" Duo laughed. "Look, I don't know what's going on with you and her, but if you have feelings for her you better tell her, before you lose her to a guy like Ben. I don't know what I would do if I lost Ayame." He admitted begrudgingly. Heero nodded as Duo walked out of the room. Meika turned in her sleep.

"Heero." She muttered, still sleeping. His breath caught in his throat as she said his name. She was dreaming about him?

A few hours later Meika awoke to Heero asleep in the chair next to her.

"How are you feeling?" He asked quietly, as he woke up.

"I feel all right. What happened?" She looked around the room sitting up.

"You passed out from exhaustion. Here, eat this." Heero explained handing her the plate. Meika nodded and slowly ate her food.

"You're pushing yourself to far Meika; it won't help anyone if you pass out again." Heero's voice was calm.

"I'm sorry." She looked down sadly. After she was done eating Heero took the plate from her.

"Meika…" Heero started, looking in her eyes. "About what happened with Relena..." He was cut short by Meika's finger on his lips.

"Shhh. It's forgotten. I'm really sorry about that. I had no idea you were in a relationship." She smiled and started to walk from the room when Heero grabbed her shoulder, turning her around.

"We're not. We never were. I actually find her rather annoying." Meika blinked at this statement.

"Oh." Meika leaned against the wall. "But, why does it matter to you whether I think you are with her or not? You don't strike me as the type of guy that would try to prove anything to anyone." Heero sighed and slammed his fist against the wall by her head and put his other hand on the wall on her other side.

"It just important okay!" Heero seemed very frustrated. Meika cocked her head to the side and stared into his eyes. "I was angry enough that she decided to go and kiss me, and then you saw." He shook his head and growled. "And then there's that stupid guy down stairs."

"Ben?" Meika questioned trying to make sense of what he was saying.

"Yes! He doesn't know how to keep his eyes where they belong." Heero's voice was visceral.

"I'm not sure I understand." Meika confessed. Heero stared at her momentarily before roughly pushing her against the wall; one of his hands was on the side of her face as the other slinked around her lower back pulling her to him.

"Hee.." Meika started but was cut off when he pressed his lips aggressively against hers. The kiss was brief but left her head spinning. She looked up at him shyly. He kissed her again, but this kiss was much more gentle and filled with passion. She returned his kiss moving her mouth against his, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

Their kiss was intruped by a shout from downstairs.

"OZ is coming!" It was Ayame's voice

"We have to go."Heero said grabbing Meika's hand and pulling her down stairs. Ayame and Duo were gathering up some supplies, while the others were on lookout. Meika ran to Ben.

"Thank you so much for helping us." She bowed slightly

"Anytime flower." He moved to put his hand on her face, but Heero grabbed his wrist and stopped him.

"I see how it is." He laughed and ushered them out. They made it to the jeep and Duo jumped in the driver's seat, Meika was slightly confused but climbed in the back beside Heero. Ayame sat beside Duo as they drove off.

"How did they find us?" Meika asked a short while later.

"Not sure." Quatre said. "Ben's brother came in saying he saw OZ trucks, that's all we know."

"Are you feeling better Meika?" Katsumi asked. Meika noticed that Quatre had his arm draped around Katsumi's shoulder, and that she had her head snuggled to his chest. She smiled.

"Yeah, I'm wonderful." She grinned blushing a bit, thinking back to when Heero kissed her. At least if they had to drive for 200 miles, she had something good to think about.


	12. Chapter 14

Chapter 14: To America

Meika awoke after a long sleep with her head on Heero's shoulder. She looked up and smiled.

"Look, the airport." Katsumi turned and shook Quatre to wake him up.

"We're finally here huh?" Duo said, grinning.

Ayame leapt out of the jeep as soon as they had stopped. Quatre jumped out and gently helped Katsumi out.

"I think only a few of us should go and look at the flight schedule." Meika said. "If we all go in we will attract too much attention. I think the best people for the job would be Ayame, Katsumi, and Wufei. Their pictures haven't been plastered all over the TV."

There was agreement throughout the group as the three crept quietly towards the airport entrance. The trio then appeared to be normal citizens looking for their flight.

"There's one for Albuquerque. Up there on the left screen under the flight for Seattle." Ayame pointed out. The schedule read that the flight would be leaving in an hour from gate three. When they returned to the rest of the group, the plan was met with disproval from Meika.

"It will still be daylight then, it will be hard to sneak onto a flight in the middle of the day." Meika pointed out.

"Well, gate three is close to the tree line, so if we go in groups of two, we should be able to make it there safely." Heero said.

"Oh, okay. Well then let's go!" Meika replied, slightly upbeat now. Trowa began passing out bundles of supplies. When everything was packed, the group left the empty stealth jeep.

"Meika and I will go first. I won't be able to run because of these injuries. Everyone should follow at about 10 minute intervals." Heero said without protest. Heero slipped his hand over Meika's as they made their way to the cargo hold of the plane. When they were safely onboard Heero and Meika set their belongings in a corner behind some tall luggage. Meika was setting her stuff down when Heero slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her softly against him. She turned in his arms so they were facing each other and placed a shy kiss on his lips. The two jumped apart when there was a coughing sound behind them.

"So, that's why you wanted to go first! A little alone time I see." Duo said laughingly. Ayame was next to him giggling. Meika smiled and looked at Heero who she would swear was hiding a blush. A few moments later Quatre and Katsumi followed them.

"Hey! Quatre you'll never guess what Heero and…" Duo's sentence was cut short as Heero punched him on the top of his head. When Trowa and Wufei arrived Duo was unconscious and the rest of the group was laughing.

Shortly after they were all on board, the plane took off.

"Well, we're on our way." Katsumi sat on the floor curling up next to Quatre.

"Hey, Katsumi. What kind of connections do you have?" Quatre asked her. The others perked up a little at this question.

"My parent's best friend. She's funny, I think even you guys would be scared at how against Oz she is."

"Are you sure she is still in Albuquerque?" Heero asked.

Katsumi nodded. "Oh yeah, I guarantee that."

Ayame smiled inwardly. At least it sounded like this woman would be helpful. Ayame closed her eyes as Duo pulled her next to him. In a few short moments the lulling of the engines put her to sleep.

One by one the others fell asleep. Meika continued check the supplies and preparing the ammunition and guns. When she was done she laid down next to where Heero was sitting. She had thought he was asleep until she heard him sigh.

"Hm?" she queried.

"These bandages are awkward." Meika laughed softly and kneeled in front of him.

"Can I?" She asked shyly. Heero nodded and removed his shirt. Almost his whole torso was wound in bandages. Meika blushed a little as she began to remove the bandages.

"I'm sorry you had to save me, otherwise this never would have happened." She said sadly. Heero lifted her chin and looked into her eyes.

"I would never let something happen to you." He kissed her forehead lightly. She pulled the rest of his bandages off.

"Your wounds are healing nicely. You won't need the bandages anymore." She traced her fingers over the holes in his side. He smiled and pulled his shirt over his head and pulled Meika into his lap. She blushed and nuzzled his neck.

"So tell me about you." Meika blinked at his question.

"Well I was born in the United States but moved to Japan when I was three. I grew up in downtown Tokyo. I entered the flight academy when I was thirteen." Heero was stroking her hair gently.

A groggy Duo turned over and interrupted. "You guys should sleep, save your lovey moments for then you're alone." Meika laughed as Duo turned back over and wrapped his arms around Ayame. Meika put her head on Heero's chest. The sound of his heartbeat quickly put her to sleep.

A few hours later Meika was awoken by a small rustling noise. She opened one eye and realized that Heero wasn't where he had been lying a few hours before. She looked up and noticed that he was repacking the supplies so they would be more balanced when they were going to have to carry them. She watched with interest until suddenly he winced and sucked in breath sharply. His hand shot to his side and he closed his eyes. Meika sat up, worried. After a brief moment like that, he went back to packing the bundles.

Meika walked over to his side. He looked up at her as she placed her hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay? Do you want some help? Just because I took the bandages off didn't mean you were completely healed." Heero stared at her for a moment and nodded. With two working the job was done quickly. Meika sat back down and looked at the others. Trowa was sitting atop a stack of boxes with his head supported by his arms on another box. Wufei was leaning against the far wall. She smiled when she saw the other four. Ayame was curled up on the floor with Duo holding her. Quatre was laying on his back and Katsumi had her head on his chest. The cats were curled up next to her. Suddenly there was a small lurch and the sensation of rolling on a tar path.

"Everybody up! We've landed!" Heero shouted. Everyone stirred and woke up. Taking bundles and weapons, everyone was ready when the cargo doors opened. It was night and it was easy for the group to sneak out. They made a run for it, into the trees.

"What's the plan now?" Ayame asked.

"Ms. Reo's house is in the middle of the desert. Near the border to Mexico." Katsumi said shyly.

"What?" Wufei asked angrily.

"Were going to have to 'borrow' a vehicle to get there." Heero said nonchalantly. Finding a truck was no problem, and Ayame hotwired it easily. Meika jumped in the driver's seat and Katsumi got in the passenger seat so she could give Meika directions. The journey took four days in the truck.


	13. Chapter 15

Chapter 15: A little romance in the middle of war

"Katsumi, you never said anything about the house being this big!" Quatre exclaimed when the group got a good look of the building. It had five stories and covered the area of a football field. Katsumi laughed and blushed, rubbing the back of her neck. Everybody piled out of the truck and went up to the double doors. Katsumi hesitated for a moment and knocked. The door swung open and a tall thin woman stood in the doorway. She scanned the group.

"Hello." She said not sounding very friendly. _Uh oh. We're in trouble now_, Meika thought.

"Hello Ms. Reo. It's me, Katsumi" Katsumi was desperately hoping that Ms. Reo would remember her. Ms. Reo regarded her with a scrutinizing stare. Then a look of dawning appeared on the woman's face.

"Katsumi! I haven't seen you in so long! Come, come inside and bring your companions. Get out of the heat." Ms. Reo said. They all went in and sat down. Quatre sat by Katsumi of course. "So what brings you all the way to America?"

Katsumi explained their predicament.

"So these are the Gundam pilots huh?" The woman scanned the five men in front of her. "What are their names?"

"That's Duo and Ayame over there. Trowa is the one leaning against the wall, and Meika is sitting in between Heero, the brown haired one, and Wufei the black haired one." Katsumi responded

"And who is the one next to you?" Ms. Reo asked.

Katsumi blushed at having forgotten one. "This is Quatre."

Ms. Reo smiled knowingly. "So when are you going to marry him?" Katsumi blushed and Quatre just smiled. Duo burst out laughing along with everybody else. Even Heero smiled in amusement.

"So you kids want anything to eat?" Ms. Reo asked changing the subject. There was a definite yes from the entire group to that suggestion.

"Let's get you settled first, there are five rooms, why not have all the girls in one, so that will leave four." Ms. Reo said thoughtfully. In the end all the girls shared a room, Trowa and Wufei shared a room, and Heero, Duo, and Quatre each had their own room. After everyone had a much needed shower, the group sat around the table to eat and converse.

"OZ doesn't really exist out here, so you guys should be safe." Ms. Reo was saying.

"If that's the case, why don't we take a break for a while?" Duo suggested. Everyone agreed.

"Besides that, New Year's is coming up and I'd like to celebrate something without OZ bearing down on me." Quatre put in.

"What's today's date?" Trowa asked.

"The 29th, which means we have two days. What are we going to do for two days?" Heero asked.

Katsumi grinned. "Relax!" She said happily. Everyone approved of this, a chance to get a rest from looking over their backs.

"On New Year's there is the best party in town, you all should go." Ms. Reo suggested.

"Sounds like fun." Meika said. After everyone was finished eating they all got ready for bed.

"So, Katsumi." Katsumi looked at Ayame, who was brushing her hair.

"Hn?"

"What exactly are your feelings for Quatre?" Katsumi blushed.

"Same as your feelings for Duo, I suppose." She replied giggling. Meika came in the room and shut the door behind her.

"What you all talking about?" She asked and Ayame told her.

"So what's going on with you and Heero?" Ayame pounced on the new opportunity.

Meika looked down a little sad. "I wish I knew."

"Aww. Come on. We've all seen how he looks at you, and how protective he is of you." Katsumi pointed out while climbing onto the futon. Ayame laid back on the pulled out mattress, and Meika sat on the bed.

"I guess, only time will tell." Meika said before going to sleep.

The next morning, Ayame was the first one awake, or so she thought. When she reached the living room she saw Duo outside in only a pair of pajama pants watching the sunrise over the desert. She walked up next to him and leaned on his shoulder.

"I missed you last night." He said holding her as they watched the sun come up together. When the sun was finally up Ayame went back to the room to see Meika and Katsumi getting ready for the day.

"You know I was thinking. It would be nice to surprise the guys, if it's not too much trouble." Ayame said.

"What did you have in mind?" Katsumi asked.

"Well, we haven't had a good meal in a long time so I was thinking that we could make them dinner." She responded happily.

"That sounds like fun!" Meika joined in, "but, I don't know how to cook." There was a look of sadness on her face.

"It's okay Meika, I'll help you. I'm a great cook." Katsumi said. When the girls told their plan to Ms. Reo a while later she agreed and gave them enough money to buy what they needed.

"Perfect, we can get the stuff we need in town today, but we'll have to make sure that the boys are no where around when we get the stuff." Katsumi said, the other two laughed.

Duo came in to say that the boys were ready to go into town too.

"How are we going to get there?" Heero asked when the group was outside.

"We are going to ride the bus in. There is a bus stop a short walking distance from here." Katsumi stated. The group followed her for about a quarter of a mile, until they reached the bus stop. To the others surprise, it was a huge air conditioned building.

"What? You expected it to be a sign post in the middle of the desert?"Katsumi asked as she led them inside. Ayame looked around inside. It was surprisingly full. There were all kinds of people coming and going. The building even had a small café.

"This many people live out in the desert?" She questioned. Katsumi shrugged.

"No not really, most of the people here are probably station hoppers. They ride the bus until it reaches a stop. Then they get off and wait for another one." Ayame could tell from her tone that Katsumi didn't really like the notion of traveling like that.

An intercom crackled, "Bus 3971 now arriving, destination Downtown Albuquerque." Droned a bored sounding woman. Everyone stood up and walked to the loading walk. Despite the number of people in the station, the bus was pretty empty. It was a short ride into town and when the bus stopped, everyone exited, and regarded the bustling city with wide eyes.

"I don't suppose it gets any busier on New Years?" Ayame wondered. Katsumi again answered with a shrug.

"Look, us girls are going to run some errands." Meika said addressing the boys, but keeping her eyes on Heero. "Take some of this money and meet us back here around lunch time, kay?" She smiled and Heero regarded her, looking as though he was deciding if it were safe for them to go.

"We'll be fine." Ayame said seeing the look in his eyes. "Let's go." The three girls took off without a second glance behind them.

"Where can we find all this stuff?" Meika asked a little confused looking at the recipe. Katsumi took it and looked it over.

"There is a shop down this road." She said turning. The shop was large and they found almost everything they were looking for in one stop.

"Now all we need is Swedish ground pepper and Nigerian onions. What is a Nigerian onion?" Meika asked a look of distaste on her features.

"Heck if I know." Ayame answered laughing. "An onion from Nigeria?" The girls continued searching for a vegetable shop when they were suddenly stopped by a little old man in the road.

"Well if it isn't Katsumi!"

"Do I know you?" Katsumi asked trying to place the man.

"I'm shocked you don't remember me. I'm Pablo Quaga." There was no light of recognition in Katsumi's eyes.

Then she remembered him and nodded. "It's good to see you." Meika got the hint that she wasn't particularly fond of him and cast a glance at Ayame.

"I hear you looking for some Nigerian onions and some Swedish ground pepper. I happen to have some right here. Take whatever you need." The old man offered. Katsumi shrugged and lead them into the shop, though it wasn't really shop like, it was more like a shed with goods on makeshift shelves in the back. Sure enough the things they needed were in stock, and they got what they wanted and paid. On their way out the little old man offered them some sort of fruit. He said that he had just gotten it shipped in and wanted to know if they would try it so he might be able to pick up some more customers. They accepted the food and ate it.

"This is delicious!" Ayame exclaimed. The old man looked content and bid them good day as they headed back up to meet with the boys. They guys were waiting for them when they got there.

"What did you guys do all morning?" Meika asked when they arrived. The boys shifted uncomfortably.

"Uhh… stuff." Duo answered with a smile on his face. Heero and Quatre nodded in agreement. Wufei and Trowa remained silent. On the bus back to Ms. Reo's house the group was mostly silent until Duo muttered something to Heero and Heero elbowed him. Then there was a small play scuffle. Well, Duo was playing but, you can never be quite sure when it comes to Heero. Ayame and Meika had to break it up before it turned into something more serious.

Once at the house again, the girls shooed the guys away and told them to go do something to keep themselves occupied, but to stay the hell out of the kitchen.

"All righty then, let's start with the main course." Ayame started. The two girls agreed and began working. Around five o'clock everything was ready. They set up the table in the dining room after chasing off the boys who were playing cards. Once the table was all set up, the girls called the boys in.

"Now you want to see us?" Duo's mild complaint was cut short when Quatre elbowed him and gestured to the food. Heero fought not to show any emotion about it, but a small smile crept to his lips. Trowa and Wufei seemed impressed.

The food consisted of steaks, coleslaw, baked potatoes, salad, a small vegetable plate and the Nigerian onions. The Nigerian onions actually turned out to be a fruit that tasted a bit like a pear/apple mix. As they set down to eat, Duo grabbed Ayame's arm and turned her to face him. She looked into his eyes questioningly. He smiled at her and used the back of his hand to wipe off some flour that was on her cheek, causing her to blush bright red.

Quatre offered to help Katsumi clean the dishes after the meal. The others were getting ready to head out to a place Katsumi had told them had a really pretty view. They were planning on camping there. When the dishes were done, the group took the truck up to the location. When they got there, they were all in awe. It was a small cliff that looked out to the desert beyond. They all laid out their sleeping mats and watched the sun set. Heero started a campfire, and the group made smores, while playing connect the dots with the stars. When everyone got bored most everyone fell asleep. Katsumi was awake though just looking out over the desert. Quatre moved to sit beside her and wrapped his arm around her. She hadn't even known he was still awake.

"You look sad." He studied her features. She shrugged.

"Eh, I just miss this place." She said laying her head in the crook of his neck. "Do you have any brothers or sisters?" She questioned. Quatre stifled a small laugh.

"Yeah, twenty-nine sisters, all test-tube children." Katsumi was mildly surprised but didn't say it. There was silence as the two of them enjoyed just holding one another. Quatre soon noticed that Katsumi was asleep; he smiled and kissed her forehead before going to sleep himself.

The next morning was New Year's. When the group awoke they drove back to Ms. Reo's house to get ready. Trowa and Wufei went ahead in town while Duo, Quatre and Heero were stuck waiting for the girls to get ready. The three emerged down the stairs together giggling. The boys were having a heated discussion about whether the Leo model mobile suit was still suitable for fighting; Heero was in the middle of his sentence when he noticed Quatre and Duo staring at the stairs practically drooling. When he looked he saw Katsumi had her hair pulled back into an intricate bun and had worn a red v-neck long sleeve dress that was just past her knees. Quatre blushed a little and took her hand. Ayame had opted for a deep blue dress that just touched her knees and tied around her neck. Her hair was done in loose curls that framed her face perfectly. Duo nearly yanked her off the stairs into his arms when she was close enough. Meika was last down the stairs. She was wearing a dark green dress that stopped at her mid-thighs and had capped sleeves. She had chosen to leave her hair down, because she never wore it like that.

It was such a shock to see the girls all dressed up when usually they were all carrying guns and suited for war. The group walked out of the house and took the bus up to the city. Not surprisingly the bus was packed with people this time.

The city was also very busy. Lots of people all dressed up too. The group met up with Trowa and Wufei when they got there. Trowa whispered something to Duo and he nodded.

"Hey we have to go check something out. Mind waiting for us for a bit?" Duo questioned the girls. There were no objections. And they guys started off.

"Do they have fireworks?" Meika asked Katsumi excitedly. She nodded.

"If I remember correctly, they have a great fireworks display." Katsumi replied happily.

"What are they doing?" Ayame asked looking over at the guys who were busy in a shop a short distance away. She turned then she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. The girls turned around to come face to face with four tall guys.

"Yes?" Ayame asked

"If you girls are all alone you should come with us." One said. Ayame backed up a step.

Meika rolled her eyes. "Get lost. We're not interested." She said with a tone of disgust. Katsumi backed up a bit also when one of the guys got too close for her to feel comfortable.

The first guy didn't look overly pleased with Meika's statement. "I said come with us." He insisted in a low voice, grabbing Meika by the arm. She prepared to defend herself when the guy was kicked to the ground. Heero was in front of her in an instant and the other guys had followed him to the girls.

"Hey, what did you do that for?" The guy said standing up.

"What do you want?" Duo asked pulling Ayame behind him.

"These girls are gonna spend the night with us." One sneered.

"No they're not." Quatre responded.

"Oh yeah and who's gonna make them stay?" Taunted the third.

"No one. Were not gonna go with you ever." Meika said. The first one raised his fist and took a step towards the group. He swung at Heero, while the second took a swing at Quatre. Quatre ducked and Heero caught the first guy's fist in his hand and pushed him back on the ground. Heero then pulled out a small gun he had brought with him. Seeing the gun the four men left instantly.

"Are you all right?" Quatre looked at Katsumi. Duo put his arms protectively around Ayame.

"We're fine." Katsumi answered.

"Come on Ayame I want to show you something!" Duo said cheerfully grabbing her hand and walking down the street. Trowa and Wufei sighed.

"Actually, we don't want to be around all the love birds." Wufei stated.

"Enjoy the night." Trowa said before walking off with Wufei.

"Would you care to join me for dinner?" Quatre asked Katsumi bowing slighting and offering his hand to her. She agreed, taking his hand while blushing and they walked off in the opposite direction.

"Well it looks like it's just us." Meika said turning to Heero.

Ayame was being dragged by Duo.

"Waaiiittt!" She called laughing. "Where are we going?" She took this time to notice that Duo had changed from his usual clothes into a red button up shirt and a pair of black slacks. She was so busy looking at him that she didn't even notice that he had stopped jogging, and she ran into him.

"Ohh… sorry. You shouldn't stop so suddenly!" She complained. Duo just laughed and pulled her into his chest. A bright blush grew across her cheeks as he ran his hands through her hair and pulled her into him, kissing her gently. He pulled away from her only because they both needed to breathe at some point.

"Well?" He questioned, "What do you think?" Ayame looked around. They were in a beautiful garden filled with all types of flowers.

"Oh. Wow." She said in amazement. "It's beautiful!"

"Just like you." Duo muttered softly, but Ayame heard him and smiled.

"I thought we could watch the fireworks from here." Duo said and pointed to a bench in the middle of the garden.

"That would be wonderful! You really planned this all out huh?" She giggled as he led her over to the bench and pulled her in his lap.

"I wanted tonight to be special. Who knows when we'll get another opportunity to go out like this again." Ayame nodded in agreement.

"Here, this is for you too." Duo said handing her a small box. Ayame took the box from him curiously and pulled the top off. Inside was a pair of stud earrings. They were different shades of blue and it looked like the colors were constantly swirling.

"You didn't have to." Ayame looked down.

Duo ran his hand along her back. "But they suit you perfectly. I want you to have them. Do you like them?"

"I love them." Ayame grinned throwing her arms around Duo. They enjoyed the rest of the night together chatting and cuddling.

Quatre had lead Katsumi to an open field on the outskirts of the city.

"I thought we were going to dinner?" She questioned.

"We are, I never said it was in a restaurant though." He laughed quietly and pointed to a blanket in the middle of the field. On the blanket there was an entire picnic laid out for them. Katsumi smiled happily and hugged Quatre.

"I thought it would be more fun, if we were alone rather than in a busy restaurant." He admitted shyly. Katsumi nodded in agreement. Quatre wrapped his arm around her waist and held her close to him.

"How did you get all this set up? You were with me all day." She asked. Quatre smiled.

"Trowa and Wufei. They left and came here to set all this up for us." He replied, thankful to his two friends. Katsumi noticed a small box laying beside her, but decided not to say anything. Quatre seeing her eyeing the box picked it up and handed it to her.

"It's for you." He said. She took the box from his hand and pulled open the red gift wrap around it. Inside was a silver necklace with a crescent moon on the bottom. Sitting in the moon was a tiny cat.

"Oh it's perfect!" She yelled happily before glomping Quatre in a hug. He leaned into her gently and placed a short kiss on her lips. Katsumi's faced turned the same color as her dress. He pulled back to gauge her reaction, seeing that she wasn't in disapproval, he kissed her again. This time letting all of his feelings pour into the kiss. Their tender kisses only stopped when the fireworks started.

Heero and Meika were standing alone in the street in awkward silence.

Heero looked down at the ground. Something about his posture told Meika that he was angry.

"What's wrong Heero?" She questioned. "You seem upset."

"I'm not quite sure what we're supposed to do." He replied quietly. Meika looked a bit confused. Heero noticed and sighed.

"I've never taken a girl out before. Well, I did once. But it was a mission and everything was planned out, in the end I had to kill her. I don't think real dates are quite the same." He said shyly. Meika giggled.

"Oh, Heero. I don't care what we do." She was talking in between giggles. "I didn't even know we were going on a date, so I'm just happy to spend time with you without having to watch our backs." He nodded in agreement.

She grabbed his hand. "Let's just walk around. Kay?" She smiled and the two walked slowly through the streets.

"Tell me about your past." Meika said to Heero as they admired the city. Heero looked down.

"I was raised by my mom and step-father until I was 7. They were both killed then. After that I was a ward of Odin. He taught me to survive on my own, and how to shoot. We went on a mission together when I was 10. He died at that time. When I was 15 Doctor J found me, and offered me the chance to pilot a Gundam. It's been war for me my whole life. I feel out of my element when I'm around you." He stated plainly. "But, I like it." Heero smiled at her. She blushed a little.

"Why did you join the pilot academy?" Heero asked her.

"I wanted to make a difference I suppose." She thought momentarily.

"What happened, when you left?" Heero again asked. She took this to mean that he wanted to know if she really had killed all those people, so she told him the story. He nodded when she was done.

"Well, I'm glad it all happened like that." The two stopped suddenly when they heard music coming from the center of the city. Walking over, they saw many couples dancing to a waltz.

"Oh, wow." Meika smiled. "They all look so happy." When she looked up Heero was gone.

"Heero?" She looked around the crowd, and began to panic. She spun around and he was standing behind her holding a single red rose. Before she knew what was happening he had slipped the rose behind her ear, though he was careful to take out the thorns first. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to where everyone was dancing.

"Heero… nooo… Stop… Heero. No. I can't dance." Her pleas were falling on deaf ears. He stopped in the middle and wrapped one arm around her waist and grabbed her hand with his other.

"Put your hand on my shoulder." His tone left no room for argument. She did as he said. He pulled her close to him, and guided her around the dance floor.

"Don't think about it, just follow me." He whispered in her ear. She closed her eyes and let him lead her effortlessly. When the music stopped he leaned down and kissed her. Meika's whole world stopped. She wanted nothing more than to stay in his arms for eternity. A bursting sound broke them apart. They looked up to see bright fireworks going off in the sky.

"I never thought I would find someone I care about as much as I do you." Heero admitted quietly.

"Well you don't have to worry because I don't plan on going anywhere." Meika grinned and leaned her head against his shoulder.

When the fireworks were over Heero and Meika headed back to the bus stop. Everyone was already there waiting for them. Trowa and Wufei looked shocked to see Heero with his arm around the blonde girl. And was he…smiling? Trowa laughed to himself as they all got on the bus and headed back to the house.

When they all headed to their rooms Ayame turned and gave Duo a goodnight kiss. Meika and Katsumi giggled as the three girls walked into their room.

"Guess what Guess what!" Ayame said while dancing around the room happily. She stopped in front of the two others and showed them her earrings.

"Wow, those are so beautiful!" Meika squealed. Ayame gasped and pointed to the necklace around Katsumi's neck. Meika followed her finger and her jaw dropped.

"You guys, I'm so happy for you! Those are so pretty!" They both stared at her.

"Well let's see it then." Ayame questioned. Meika looked at her confused.

"See what?"

"Didn't Heero give you anything?" Meika shook her head.

"No."

"Oh." Ayame looked down. She was sure that Duo had said that Heero had gotten her something. She shrugged it off and got ready for bed. The three continued to gossip about their date while they got ready for bed. Little did they know Quatre and Duo had their ears pressed up against the door.

"This is ridiculous." Heero scolded them before going off to his room.

"Hey Quatre, didn't Meika just say Heero didn't give her anything?" Duo question and Quatre agreed.

"I'm sure he bought something. I wonder why he didn't give it to her." Quatre contemplated. The two boys went to their rooms shortly after and went to sleep.

Heero then, around 3 a.m., decided to sneak into Meika's room and lay the gift beside her in bed, however, poor Meika, at the touch of Heero's skin, woke up screaming! She grabbed a knife from under her bed, and screamed "burglar!"…..she barely got the words out before Heero had covered her mouth, and smoothly proclaimed "it's just me beautiful"…

Somehow, Heero's touch made everything better. She sighed, and felt Heero get into bed beside her. Shortly later, a "dude, Heero, get out of the room" came from a sharp and sleepy Ayame in the background.

Heero grumbled a bit, but then left, satisfied that Meika had not yet discovered her gift….


	14. Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Goodbyes

Katsumi guessed it was mid-morning before she woke up. Ayame and Meika were both still asleep so she dressed and stepped out of the room. She was headed to the kitchen when she ran into someone coming out of another room.

"I'm sorry. I should have been watching where I was going." Katsumi said. When she looked at the other person she was shocked to come face to face with someone she didn't know. The woman in front of her looked strangely familiar. A man walked out beside the woman. Katsumi also thought she recognized him, but couldn't place him.

"Hey, who are these people?" Quatre's voice came from behind her. She sighed in relief when she saw him and Duo walking towards her. Heero was behind them with Meika and Ayame. Trowa and Wufei followed at length. Quatre wrapped his arm around Katsumi protectively.

"I don't know. I know them, I think. But I don't at the same time." She answered.

"Do you two know Katsumi?" Quatre asked. The man and woman looked disturbed at that name.

"We used to know a Katsumi, but…"

"Who are you?" Heero's tone was suspicious.

"I'm Takuto Otakawan. This is my wife, Aoki." The man answered and Katsumi drew her breath sharply. Yasu and Take meowed beside her.

"What's wrong?" Quatre asked. Katsumi felt as though she couldn't breathe. Takuto and Aoki Otakawan, those had been her parent's names. Ms. Reo came upstairs at that moment and saw the two groups. She slapped herself on the forehead and stood in between them.

"Let's all go and eat breakfast and I'll explain." Complacent to this the two adults and the group of young adults walked down to breakfast. Ms. Reo cleared her throat, and everyone looked at her.

"These eight young people are the ones who fight OZ in Japan. They were forced out of their base of operations and came here. The man and the woman are Katsumi's parents." Katsumi stood up quickly.

"But my parents were killed in the raid!" Katsumi protested at the same time that Takuto protested that his daughter had died in the raid.

"No no I assure you, those are you parents Katsumi, and that is your daughter Mr. and Mrs. Otakawan." Ms. Reo said. Katsumi looked nervous. She had adjusted to not having her family around. Things would be different now.

Ayame cast a glance between Katsumi and her parents. The former was wary of the latter and made no effort to accept the greetings from her family. Ayame was a little concerned about her. Quatre put his hand on Katsumi's shoulder.

"Katsumi, why don't you introduce your parents to your friends?" Ms. Reo said breaking the tension. Katsumi went around the room and pointed everyone out.

"You know it's a lovely day out. You should all go swimming." Ms. Reo said lightly.

"Swimming!" Meika's eyes widened. "I love swimming."

"Wahoo!" Duo yelled jumping in the pool a short time later. Wufei sat cross legged on the side of the pool and Trowa sat with his feet dangling in. Heero, after a lot of goading from Meika, finally got in the water. Katsumi, Ayame and Quatre were all swimming around and got into a huge splash war. The Otakawans joined the group a little later. They all swam until the sun set, when they got out and dried off.

"You kids are leaving tomorrow right?" Ms. Reo asked them at dinner. Heero nodded.

"Yeah, that's when the person you were talking to is arriving to pick us up right?" Duo queried.

"Yes." Ms. Reo looked at Katsumi. "So will you be leaving with them?" Katsumi paused. She seemed to be deciding what her answer would be. They all watched her.

"Well?" Wufei asked impatiently. Katsumi shook her head.

"No, I'll be staying here with my family." She cut off Quatre's protests by putting her hand on his shoulder. Ayame wasn't surprised. She doubted that her answer would have been any different, if she were in that situation.

"Why?" Duo asked, apparently he was surprised.

"Because I never was much help to you guys anyways. Meika was trained at the flight academy and is as good a fighter as any of you guys. Ayame is the best technician on the planet probably, and I'm just a renegade seeking revenge. Now, there is no revenge to seek. My family is alive and well." She responded evenly. Ayame knew she wasn't feeling sorry for herself. She had stated what she believed, however untrue it was. Quatre opened his mouth to protest, but she stood up and cut him off.

"You can't say that I'm wrong either." Katsumi stated walking off; the group was down to one less member. This idea wasn't really appealing to Meika, not only had she considered Katsumi a friend, but there was safety in numbers. The rest of the night was spent with the remainder of the group getting ready to leave.

Ayame awoke in the morning with Meika shaking her.

"It's time to go wake up!" Ayame scrambled to her feet and stretched. She grabbed her belongings that she had packed the night before and followed Meika down to the transport. It was a personal plane that didn't look like it could hold 8 people and the pilot, but it did. Ayame took her seat and watched as the others got on. Katsumi stood by the door as Quatre got on.

"Are you sure you want to stay?" He asked. Katsumi nodded. Quatre looked pretty upset.

"Don't worry, I'll see you again." She smiled and kissed him lightly.

"Be careful, OZ may well be out here, and you have a price on your head like the rest of us do." He said to her.

"Hey, take your own advice,. You're the ones going to the stronghold country."Quatre boarded the plane and Katsumi backed up to allow it to take off. Meika waved to her friend through the window as they took off.


	15. Chapter 17

Chapter 17: ZERO system

Meika was quiet like everyone else, she had a headache. She squinted her eyes and sighed.

"You okay?" Heero asked her. She nodded.

"We ate some weird fruit in town a few days ago and I've had a headache since."

"Just try to rest till we get back." Meika nodded and took his advice and closed her eyes. Quatre was watching the sky out the window, Duo and Ayame were talking in hushed voices, Heero and Wufei were checking the weapons and provisions, and Trowa was just staring off into space. Meika awoke about an hour later when the captain began talking.

"You guys are a pretty big thorn in OZ's side." He said to them.

"We try." Duo responded laughing.

"You guys are notorious for attacking with your gundams. What happened to them anyways?" Heero cast a dark look over his shoulder at the pilot who missed his glare.

"Oz has them." Heero said simply. The pilot nodded. Meika closed her eyes and went back to sleep. The flight to Japan was a long one.

"Where is this guy we're looking for anyways?" Duo asked when they were unloading the bundles and distributing them.

"Walk that way for about two days, and you will find his house. He will help you from there." The pilot answered before leaving. Quatre was abnormally silent as they walled though the dense undergrowth. He kept his gaze on his feet and only answered questions with short, blunt responses.

"Poor guy." Duo said softly to Ayame and Meika. They nodded in agreement. When darkness fell, the group set up camp and dozed off after a small meal. Meika shuttered as Heero killed a spider that had made a home in her sleeping bag. The first day was over and they only had to walk for another day before they would again have a base of operations. _One with no spiders_. She thought to herself.

Katsumi lay awake that night. The room seemed strangely quiet without Ayame and Meika talking and laughing about various topics. She hadn't really wanted to leave Quatre behind but her family was safe now, right? Her family was the only reason she was fighting after all, so now she needed to be here to protect them. But something nagged at her. Quatre's face when she had said she was staying. She knew that he had been upset. Quatre wore his emotions on his sleeve almost as plainly as Duo. She laid awake the whole night. When morning finally came she dressed and told her parents she was going into town to buy some groceries.

The bus was emptier then normal and most everyone looked like military personal. She thought this was odd, but ignored it until she reached down town Albuquerque. The place looked like a literal war zone.

"What happened?" She said in disbelief.

One of the soldiers on the bus turned to her. "Don't you know? I thought you were part of the relief effort." Katsumi shook her head 'no' and the solider sighed.

"Some old guy was found to be housing a bunch of illegal weapons and spies. We had reason to believe there were more, and we were right. Turns out that almost the whole town is probably with OZ. There is still a small battle going on." He glanced at her, eyes suspicious. "Who are you?"

Katsumi figured it was safe to tell him. "Katsumi Otakawan."

The solider recognized her name and bowed. "It's a pleasure to meet one of those against OZ." Katsumi nodded in greeting. They both looked up at a sudden loud noise.

"Run!" The solider said to her as they saw an aerial attack plane fly in. They ducked behind a tank along with several others.

"Can you shoot?" He asked eyes wide. Katsumi felt that familiar flush of adrenaline and rashness. She accepted the gun with a smirk. She cocked the gun and fired at one of the air raider pilots. She hit her mark after 2 shots. The solider next to her fired off a volley and scored on every single hit.

"What's your name?" She asked impressed with his skill.

"Kazuhiko."

Katsumi nodded and fired at one of the many enemy soldiers who had landed to attack on foot. Kazuhiko fired at one behind him. "How did these guys get here so silently? Don't you have aerial scanners up?"

"Hasn't had time too." Kazuhiko replied. "We've only been here a day. The aerial scanners are still being transported." A disdainful snort escaped his lips. Katsumi continued helping the solders when she realized that a headache was slowly working its way through her skull, she found this strange because she wasn't bothered by the noises.

Ayame was first up in the morning and she didn't feel well. She ate a meager breakfast by herself, and leaned against a tree. Since it was just before dawn, she decided to go back to sleep. She should have been alerted when sleep came far too easily.

Meika woke and stretched around eight o'clock in the morning. Ayame was asleep, but only her. The others were trying to figure out how to open a package that was being stubborn. Meika reached over, seized the package, and opened it without much difficulty. After she finished laughing in response to Heero's dark stares, she cooked the package of rations. When everyone had eaten breakfast they decided to get moving.

"Hey Ayame, wake up. Ayame. Hey sleepyhead!" Duo said loudly. Ayame groaned but didn't wake up. Duo went to brush a strand of hair from her face when he quickly jerked his hand away.

"Hey, she's burning up." He said, worriedly. Meika put her hand on Ayame's forehead and confirmed this.

"She'll have to be carried; we don't have anything to pull her on." Meika announced. Duo bent down and scooped her up, like Meika knew he would.

"We're lucky Quatre's sister Iria will be there. She's a doctor and can see what's wrong with Ayame." Duo said and Quatre nodded. Meika wiped her forehead with the back of her arm. It was far too hot in here for it to still be winter.

An hour later, Meika heard a buzzing sound in her ears that everyone else seemed oblivious to. Shaking her head didn't clear it and she felt slightly ornery when the buzzing made her headache worse. She squinted her eyes to keep out the light, but still her migraine grew.

She was curious to notice the loss of feeling in her arms and legs, less than a couple of hours later. This was replaced by a strange tingling sensation soon after. She drank some water but it didn't help. She wasn't dehydrated. Her vision kept blurring repeatedly.

Heero stopped to let her catch up. She had been lagging far behind everyone all day. When he asked her what was wrong, she went to nod and assure him everything was fine, but she tripped over a tree branch and this sent a jackknife pain through her whole body, which she made known by a small yelping sound. Heero caught her and looked at her worriedly. She went to get up but nothing responded and all she could do was try to wait out the way the world was spinning. But it refused to stop and her vision darkened.

"Meika! Are you all right?" Heero asked. She heard his voice and put her hand up to find him. Heero tried to help her to her feet, but it was no use. When he couldn't do anymore for her, he picked her up like Duo was carrying Ayame and bit his lip.

"This is really bad Heero. This isn't a virus that's got these two. Something happened to them that's taking effect now." Heero nodded slightly in agreement with Duo. The group quickened their pace through the forest.

Katsumi woke up in a hospital type place. She didn't remember what had happened at first. But then the memories came flooding back to her. They were fighting, and she felt absolutely awful. She turned her head and her gaze fell upon Kazuhiro. He was taking to her father and mother. Kazuhiro noticed she was awake and walked over.

"Do you feel okay?" He asked. She shook her hand, that simple motion made her dizzy and sick to her stomach.

"Why do I feel so bad?" She asked softly.

"The doctor doesn't know. The symptoms I described don't line up with anything he's ever heard of. But don't worry; we'll take care of you." Kazuhiro said grinning.

"How did the fight turn out?"

"Bad, only nine including you made it out. We had to retreat and hand Albuquerque over to OZ."

"So who are you anyways?" Mr. Otakawan asked the man that had saved his daughter. "We never got your name."

"I'm actually surprised you don't recognize me." Kazuhiko laughed to himself. "My name is Kazuhiko, Kazuhiko Otakawan." Mr. and Mrs. Otakawan stared at him in horror.

"No, our son, he died… in an accident when he was six." Mrs. Otakawan said.

"Actually, I faked my own death so I could learn to fight and join the military." He responded, with obvious disdain towards the people who were his parents.

Katsumi closed her eyes against the headache that appeared with this onslaught of new information. She fingered the necklace Quatre had given her, and drifted back to sleep.

When Ayame woke up, it was only for a moment while she was given a drink and something to eat. When that had finished, she lapsed back into unconsciousness. Duo stared at her worriedly. Meika hadn't awoken at all. The group had reached the place, and Quatre's sister was busy trying to figure out what was wrong with the girls. Wufei noticed that the usually controlled Heero kept glancing nervously between the door and the bed where Meika laid. Though he hadn't left her side since they arrived.

The door opened and Iria came into the room. All five Gundam pilots gave her their attention. Quatre, Wufei, and Trowa were all just as disturbed by the strange calamity that had befallen Meika and Ayame, as Duo and Heero were.

"Turns out the girls were poisoned by a highly toxic candy like fruit. Judging by the traces in their blood stream, I would say it was around five days ago. Ring any bells?" Iria asked.

"Yeah! That's the day we left them alone in Albuquerque. They said that a guy named Pablo Quaga gave them some fruit." Duo responded after thinking for a moment. Iria frowned.

"Pablo Quaga? He is one of the most trusted spies for OZ. If he gave the fruit to these girls, it's likely that he meant for it to kill them." Iria stated. Heero cursed.

"Damn it! We shouldn't have left them alone." Heero said before turning to Quatre. "Not only them, but Katsumi most likely ate the fruit as well." Trowa looked up from the newspaper he had been reading.

"It gets worse, turns out Albuquerque was found to harbor OZ spies. That place has been turned into a war zone." Quatre's mouth hung open. He couldn't find the words to express how he was feeling.

"I'll start working on an antidote. We'll need every moment if were to get it to the states to your friend." Iria said as she left the room. Quatre gave an exhausted sigh. Duo felt bad for him. At least Ayame and Meika were in the same country. The day waned into night and the boys were permitted to doze in the room.

Heero woke up when Iria walked into the room with breakfast. He accepted the food and drink while regarding Iria with a long stare.

"How's the antidote coming?" He asked.

"Not good, I'm having trouble isolating the poisonous compounds and finding something that neutralizes the effects of the fruit. We have the Snow White complex here, but I don't think a kiss will heal them." Iria said as she left. Heero stared out the window. Too bad the paper said Pablo Quaga was already dead. Heero would have loved to do the dirty work himself to get at him for poisoning Meika. He tapped his fingers on his arm as he took a swallow from his drink. Meika and Ayame had been hooked into IV's so there was no reason to try to wake them to give them food. Heero looked at the newspaper that Iria had left on the breakfast tray. The headline jumped out at him and he sat up straighter, alarmed.

Oz Attacks Colony With Gundam Mobile Suits, Colony Left in Ruin.

Heero's eyes widened and then narrowed sharply. He stood up and put on his jacket. He would have to head to the OZ compound and either retrieve all five gundams, or destruct them all. He hesitated when he felt a small box in his pocket, and his gaze turned to Meika. He pulled out the little blue box and opened it. Inside was a silver ring with a butterfly made from purple gemstones. The band itself weaved around the butterfly. He pulled the ring from the box and sighed. He had meant to give it to her on New Year's, but he wasn't sure how to, so he had kept it. He walked over to Meika and slid the ring on her finger. After making sure it was securely in place he kissed the back of her hand. She would understand. The fact that she was sick couldn't interfere with keeping OZ from using the gundams again. How the hell they found anyone with the ability to pilot the gundams was a mystery, but that wasn't the concern right now. He had to get the gundams away.

Heero packed rucksack full of weapons and supplies that he would need. Just when he put his hand on the door knob, the other four pilots entered the room.

"Heero. I'm guessing you saw the paper, seeing as your ready to leave." Duo said. "You can't do it alone. Wait until Ayame and Meika are healed and the seven of us will go." Heero shook his head.

"Stay here with them. When and if Meika wakes up, tell her where I went. It's my fault the gundams are in OZ's hands anyways. I'm the one who insisted we attack the base without doing extensive research on the security force. I can do this on my own." Heero went to leave again, but a Trowa's hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Then take Wufei and me with you. Duo and Quatre can stay here with the girls." Trowa said. Duo, Wufei, and Quatre agreed. Heero thought it over and then nodded.

"Fine, grab some weapons."Trowa and Wufei packed some food and weapons and followed Heero out the door. Iria met them in the hall.

"How far away is the OZ compound?" Heero asked her.

"About a hundred miles. Why?" Heero nodded and chose not to answer her question.

"Do you have any type of stealth vehicle?" Iria nodded.

"Stealth mini-tanks are in the underground garage. Good luck." Heero, Trowa and Wufei went downstairs and climbed into the mini-tank. Pulling into the forest they started in the direction of the OZ compound.

Iria walked in to check on the girls. She also needed to talk to Duo and Quatre. She closed the door behind her and sighed.

"I found something interesting while going over Meika's MRI." Both Quatre and Duo looked puzzled at this statement.

"Have either of you ever heard of the ZERO system?" Iria questioned. Quatre perked up.

"I helped invent the ZERO System. Both Heero and I possess it, though Heero is the only one who can use it properly." Quatre answered. Duo still looked lost.

"The ZERO system is a technology for interfacing the brain of the pilot with the mobile suit computer. It's used to decrease reaction time by making the pilot aware of future outcomes and possible courses of action that can be taken to achieve victory. It's dangerous though, if the pilot can't interpret the data, it will overload the brain." Quatre explained.

"Do you know if anyone else has this system?" Iria asked.

"Yes, Zech Merquise and Treize Khushrenada." Quatre was becoming a bit nervous with all the questions about the ZERO system.

"I think that last time we had talked about this you said that Heero and you were running version 1.5 correct?" Iria continued. Quatre nodded.

"Meika has 2.0." She said simply. Quatre's jaw dropped. Even Duo looked stunned.

"What's a girl like her doing with something like that?" Duo asked.

"That's not the point." Quatre said rubbing the back of his head. "Version 2.0 was supposed to be destroyed, its way too dangerous. It allows someone with the appropriate connections to control the user. Are you sure about this Iria?" The woman nodded her head.

"No wonder she is so good in battle." Duo laughed lightly. "It's like she and Heero were meant for each other. Wait, do you think someone is controlling her right now?"

"It's unlikely. If that were the case she would be incapable of showing any emotion. Which her blushing around Heero all the time wouldn't support." Quatre said. "Though it might be best if we didn't tell anyone else about it just yet till I run some more analysis."

Duo paced nervously, Heero and the other two had only been gone a couple of hours, but being split up at time like this made him uneasy. Quatre quelled his anxiety by helping Iria with her rounds.

"Aw man! I'm tired and too psyched up to sleep. I hate this!" Duo complained. Iria looked at him as she checked the IV monitors that Ayame and Meika were hooked up to.

"Then take some anesthetic, that will make you sleep for sure." Duo blinked at her.

"Nah. I only take that when I'm in pain, and I've never been in enough pain to take it.

"How is the antidote coming?" Duo asked

"Better, now we just need to figure out what can neutralize a chemical that attacks the nerve cells." Iria responded, Quatre sighed.

"Hey Katsumi is a strong girl. I'm sure that we'll get to her in time." Duo reassured Quatre, who looked away.

"You sound so sure." He said in a quiet voice that Duo had to strain to hear. Duo rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Actually, I'm spending all my worrying on Ayame. I don't have any left for anyone else." Quatre smiled half-heartedly.

"Strange how three girls walk into our lives and suddenly, they take priority over everything else." Quatre said. "Even Heero. Who would have thought." Quatre looked over at Meika. "I've never seen him care about anyone so much." Duo nodded.

"How do you think Heero and them are doing anyways?" Duo asked. Quatre shrugged, and looked to Iria who was still checking Meika and Ayame. Something seemed to be troubling her.

"Is everything all right?" Quatre asked.

"Well, yes." She sighed and rubbed her head. "Even though Meika ingested the same amount of poison as the other girl, she seems to be getting better, while Ayame is getting worse. I don't understand it."

"The ZERO system most likely." Quatre said. "When we were testing 2.0 we did notice that the immune system of the pilot seemed to strengthen greatly." Iria nodded.

"She could be waking up anytime soon." Iria said.


End file.
